James Bord, an entrepreneur who also won the 2010 World Series of Poker Europe Main Event, is the head of a consortium named the preferred buyer for historic soccer club Sheffield Wednesday, who sit at the bottom of the EFL Championship and are currently in administration.
While it’s unclear how much the bid is for, various outlets claim that the consortium will attempt to purchase the club for £20m to £30m. This is far below the sky-high valuation of £100m to £150m that the former owner, Dejphon Chansiri, put on the club over the summer.
Sheffield Wednesday in turmoil
Sheffield Wednesday, one of England’s oldest soccer clubs, officially entered administration on October 24 after not paying its employees for five of the last six months while also owing over £1m in taxes.
When a club enters administration, responsibility for running the club is passed down from the (former) owners to the administrators for a 12-month administration period.
During this period, the club’s future is assessed, and the club will either be saved, liquidated, or dissolved. Administration comes with an extremely high price from a soccer perspective. In the English Football League, administration comes with an automatic 12-point deduction, equal to four wins.
On December 1, Sheffield Wednesday were deducted a further six points for multiple breaches of EFL regulations relating to continuous payment obligations. Sheffield Wednesday’s former owner, Chansiri, was also prohibited from being an owner or a director of any club in the English Football League for three years.
Sheffield Wednesday have been extremely poor on the pitch as well, with one win, eight draws, and 15 defeats through 24 matches in the Championship, England’s second division, just below the Premier League. While they would be in last place with 11 points, their 18 points worth of deductions have them sitting on -7 points, 34 points from safety. Simply put: Unless there’s a miracle, they will be playing in England’s third tier next season, League One, as long as they are saved by a new owner.
James Bord’s soccer history
At the moment, it’s unclear who is in Bord’s consortium to purchase the historic English club. Bord has rapidly become involved with multiple football clubs over the past 12 months, with the owner of data company Short Circuit Science having a stake in Spanish Segunda Division side Cordoba CF and a 25% stake in Bulgarian top-flight outfit Septemvri.
Bord, along with Evan Sofer, also owns nearly 100% of Dunfermline, a club that competes in the Scottish Championship. They purchased the club in January 2025.
“I bought Dunfermline because I love the underdog,” Bord told The Athletic last year. “The ambition is to bring back some of their history but also to change the atmosphere at the club. Optimism. They are a very passionate fanbase that has suffered enough pain, and we’d like to bring them some joy.”
James Bord’s poker history
Aside from Bord’s massive win in the 346-entry £10,350 2010 WSOP Europe Main Event for £830,401 ($1,281,048), he has amassed $4,304,535 in career live tournament earnings. That figure currently puts Bord 31st on England’s all-time money list and 581st overall.
Bord’s biggest cash came in the 2016 €1,000,000 buy-in Big One For One Drop in Monte Carlo, a tournament that was restricted to just recreational poker players. Bord finished in fourth place for €2,100,000 ($2,315,044), with Elton Tsang winning the title for €11,111,111 ($12,248,912). That was Bord’s last recorded tournament cash.
Bord made his money as a high-stakes mixed game cash player, preferring high-low games. The 44-year-old popped up on televised cash game streams between 2021 and 2023, appearing on Poker After Dark, No Gamble No Future, and High Stakes Poker. According to reputable cash game tracker Highroll Poker, he appeared on 17 episodes for a total of 34 hours of play, where he lost -$163,950 in those sessions.
What’s next?
Bord must still pass the English Football League’s Owners and Directors’ test. With Bord having been seriously involved in gambling and poker, both as a player and as a business owner, this isn’t a given. However, considering that he has a stake in multiple soccer clubs, there is a sense that this deal will go through.
For Sheffield Wednesday, there is a huge sigh of relief in confirming that the incoming bids are enough to get them over the threshold required to avoid further sanctions for next season. The new ownership would need to pay the club’s creditors at least 25 cents on the dollar to avoid a 15-point deduction for the 2026-27 campaign.
References:
BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cpd6020z01po
