EFL Conditionally Approve Reading FC Takeover

News first broke of a potential ownership change at the Madejski Stadium way back in November, but since then we've heard very little apart from the odd whisper.

Chinese brother and sister Dai Yongge and Dai Xiu Li were supposedly set for talks with Reading before Christmas as things looked as though they were escalating, but then it was reported by the Daily Mail in January that the takeover had been blocked. At this point, even Jaap Stam was getting pretty frustrated.

Our fingers were crossed but things didn't look great, yet today we have been greeted with what seems like excellent news: confirmation from the club that the EFL have conditionally approved the change of control. A statement on the official website read:

"Upon receipt of a letter on Friday from Shaun Harvey, the Chief Executive of the EFL, Reading Football Club can now confirm that an application for a proposed change of control at the club has been conditionally approved.

"The Club will now spend the coming weeks working diligently with the EFL, our current shareholders and both Mr Yongge Dai and Miss Xiu Li Dai to ensure the application meets those specific conditions and all the relevant EFL regulations."

This suggests that there are still a few barriers to go through, but the hard part is done, meaning we'll hopefully be able to bring you a full confirmation in the next couple of weeks.

UPDATE: The Football League had this to say on the matter, via the Daily Telegraph.

“The outstanding matter relating to Reading FC’s change of control application was discussed at length during Thursday’s EFL board meeting.

“The board considered the change of application submitted by the club on behalf Mr Yongge Dai and Miss Xui Li Dai in the context of the relevant EFL regulations.

“The board unanimously determined it would not object to the transaction being completed, subject to the agreement of a number of specific conditions. Authority to conclude matters was delegated to the executive.”

In response to the news, the Supporters Trust At Reading, released the following statement on their Facebook page:

'STAR notes with interest the revival in the progress of the Chinese investors’ proposal to take a controlling stake in Reading FC. The club statement yesterday alleviates a portion of the uncertainty surrounding the club’s future. However it’s clear from the statement that progress has not been straightforward or speedy and we, like all supporters, await further details about the nature of any deal, its conditions and Premier League approval.'