Bristol Rovers’ League One rivals handed fresh points deduction after failure to pay wage bill
The deduction comes after Reading owner Dai Youngge failed to deposit 125 per cent of the Royals’ monthly wage bill into a designated account
Bristol Rovers’ League One counterparts Reading FC have been deducted another three points by the EFL after being docked one point last month for failing to pay their players with a further three-point deduction set to be applied should the club breach guidelines further.
The club’s owner Dai Yongge was ordered by an independent disciplinary commission to deposit 125 per cent of the Royals’ monthly wage bill into a designated account by September 12, however he failed to do so.
In a statement confirming the deduction, Reading added: “As communicated to our supporters previously, Mr Dai is currently undertaking an ongoing process of seeking sources of stable external investment for the football club, with the aim of mitigating the risk of cashflow complications arising in future.”
Prior to their relegation from the Championship last season, the Berkshire club were deducted six points in April which had been a suspended tally for failure to fully satisfy a business plan agreed after after an original deduction of six points which took place in November 2021 due to breaches of the EFL’s Profit and Sustainability limits.
Having been a penalty shootout away from the Premier League as recently as May 2017, Reading now find themselves in the third tier for the first time since the 2001/02 season with the latest points deduction taking the club down to 21st, just outside the relegation zone with 20th place Wigan Athletic also suffering from a points deduction of eight.
Ruben Selles’ side have picked up six points from their opening six matches following a slow start that has seen two wins and four defeats in League One, but their tally now stands at two.
Rovers had been due to travel to the Select Car Leasing Stadium last Saturday (September 9) but the fixture was postponed due to multiple international call-ups in the Royals’ squad. A new date of November 1 had been set but a second change took place due to an event in the Thames Valley taking place on the same day, with the fixture now scheduled for Tuesday November 7.
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