Wigan hit with eight-point penalty ahead of next season

The English Football League (EFL) has imposed a second points deduction on Wigan Athletic.

Wigan recently dropped into League One after relegation from the Championship. They will start their new campaign on the back foot.

They already received a deduction of four points from their tally for delayed salary payments. An additional four points remain suspended.

The EFL decided to help Wigan meet the league’s requirements. They granted club owner Abdulrahman Al-Jasmi an extended deadline to cover 125% of the projected monthly wage bill.

However, Wednesday’s deadline passed without any payments and the situation remains unresolved.

An EFL statement read: “Following the failure to ensure that an amount equal to 125% of the club’s forecast monthly wage bill was deposited in a designated club account by Wednesday, 24 May, as per the order of an Independent Disciplinary Commission, Wigan Athletic Football Club has been deducted a further four points and will now start the 2023/24 season on minus eight points (-8).

“This follows a previous sanction of four points after failing to pay its players’ wages on time in March 2023 and May 2023. 

“The EFL has spent the past 48 hours in dialogue with the Club in an attempt to find a positive outcome to the issue but as of 9.00 am Friday morning, the required funds have not been deposited.”

Wigan responded with a statement of their own expressing their disappointment in the EFL’s decision, claiming they had been transparent.

They disclosed that they would contest the decision and could respond with legal action.

Wigan’s recent ordeal adds another chapter to their turbulent journey since their days in the Premier League.

The club experienced a remarkable eight-season run from 2005 to 2013 but have bounced around the second and third tiers since then.

Their struggles became worse as they fell into administration, but a takeover in March 2021 provided a glimmer of hope.

Unfortunately, this season has been disastrous. Wigan languished at the bottom of the Championship, compounded by a three-point deduction due to unpaid wages.

An eight-point deduction makes their prospects of an immediate return look extremely unlikely.