Dai Yongge: Reading owner disqualified and told to sell club by 4 April

Reading FC owner Dai Yongge has been disqualified by the English Football League (EFL) for failing the Owners' and Directors' Test and has been ordered to sell the club by April 4th.

The date was revealed at a hearing at the Business Court in London on Friday. Dai Yongge was seeking an injunction against former Wycombe Wanderers owner Rob Couhig, claiming Couhig was obstructing his efforts to sell Reading. Judge Mr. Justice Jacobs dismissed the request for a mandatory injunction.

In a statement, the EFL said: "Following the disclosure in open court earlier today, the League can confirm that Mr Dai Yongge has recently been disqualified from being a director of Reading Football Club after failing the Owners’ and Directors’ Test. This disqualification requires Mr Dai to disinvest his interest in the Club. Should he fail to do so within the stipulated timeframe, the League will consider all options available to it under its Regulations to bring an end to the matter."

The League also stated that it will continue to work closely with Reading Football Club to facilitate the sale of the club at the earliest opportunity, in order to bring an end to the current uncertainty surrounding the club's future and its staff, supporters, and the wider community. In court on Friday, Dai Yongge argued that he could not sell the club while Couhig and his guarantee remained in place. Couhig had previously attempted to buy the club.

Reading announced at the end of last month that they had entered a period of exclusive negotiations with an unnamed company regarding a potential takeover. At the time, they said they were optimistic that a deal could be completed quickly and would be "in the best interests of all parties." Multiple takeover attempts, including one by Couhig, have fallen through since Dai Yongge committed to signing a letter of intent to sell the club last March. Currently, Reading are eighth in League One, just two points outside the play-off places, following a 10-game unbeaten run.

Following Friday's hearing, Reading released a statement saying they would work with Couhig and the EFL to find a resolution. The statement said: "The Club acknowledges the Judge made it clear that the parties should seek to find a solution to the current impasse regarding the sale of the Club by way of an alternative guarantee being provided by its owner or monies being placed in a third-party escrow account. In order to facilitate a sale, the Club looks forward to engaging with Mr. Couhig in order to resolve his claim for a guarantee. Mr. Dai remains committed to working with the EFL to sell the Club and secure its long-term future."

BBC Radio Berkshire Reading commentator Tim Dellor said fans were feeling more anxious and uncertain after today's hearing. The hearing raised more questions than answers. If the judge had issued an injunction, the club's sale could have been relatively easily achieved, Dai Yongge would have exited the club stage, and the club would have been able to move on from years of uncertainty. However, Couhig's guarantee remains in place, Dai Yongge appears stubbornly resistant to selling the club to him or anyone else, and the impasse seems set to continue. The message from the EFL is particularly concerning. There have been calls for months for Dai Yongge to be disqualified from ownership, and they have now done so. By April 4th, Reading needs to be sold, or they will be told they cannot participate in any matches while Dai Yongge remains in charge. Reading has never had any success in the play-offs before, so if they were to finally get into the top six, only to be banned from participating, it would be a new level of absurdity in this long-running saga.

Reading fan and "Sell Before We Dai" campaign advocate Caroline Parker said it feels like something big is about to happen and they may have reached the end stages. It's a complex emotion because they don't know what the future holds. The judge has cleared the way for a sale and said that the secondary issues with Rob Couhig can be dealt with separately from the sale, which is a positive message indeed. There is no excuse for the club now not to complete a sale. There is clarity now, but the problem is they don't know what to think, they are often kept in the dark and left to piece the puzzle together themselves. They still have a lot of questions, such as what the final date is and what action the EFL will take, but they just hope they can find a new owner, they have all had enough. She hopes this will be the beginning of the end for Dai Yongge at Reading.