Wolves have been relegated to the Championship. This is what will happen next

At least they have had time.

If the dark cloud of Wolverhampton Wanderers’ horrific season has one grim silver lining, it is that they have had plenty of opportunity to prepare for the worst. In fact, for the past few months, the powers that be at Molineux have been planning for the inevitable.

It happened on Monday, two days on from Rob Edwards’ side slumping to a second successive miserable defeat, 3-0 at Leeds United. West Ham United ushered them into the second tier courtesy of their goalless draw at Crystal Palace.

So it was Nuno Espirito Santo, the current West Ham manager and the man who led Wolves out of the Championship in 2018, who confirmed a return there after eight years of extraordinary highs followed by increasingly diminishing returns in the Premier League.

Now, with relegation finally certain, interim chairman Nathan Shi and the rest of the Wolves hierarchy have the chance to prove that the rare luxury of time has not been wasted. Their challenges are many and varied, but the key aims include:

• Managing a huge summer of squad changes, with sales needed to help bridge the income drop created by relegation
• Taking advantage of risky January sales by ensuring the bulk of Edwards’ new squad is in place for the majority of pre-season
• Winning around angry fans and persuading back former season ticket holders who have been priced out during the Premier League years
• Improving on commercial performances to help supplement football income
• Finding a way to improve the Molineux experience for fans
• Implementing Edwards’ plan for exciting, aggressive football.

Here, The Athletic looks at what Wolves must do next to bounce straight back.

Even in November, when Wolves sacked Vitor Pereira and lured Edwards from Middlesbrough as head coach, there was a realisation the drop was highly likely.

There was hope that Edwards might somehow deliver a new-manager bounce, tempered by an acceptance that the squad he inherited was so unbalanced and ill-equipped for the Premier League, and the dressing room so demoralised, that instant results were improbable.

When Edwards duly lost his first seven league games before the January transfer window, the club’s fate was effectively sealed and they had a level of unwanted clarity.

A few hours before the sixth of those seven defeats — a 2-0 home loss to Brentford — executive chairman Jeff Shi, who had been in his role since Fosun’s takeover in 2016, was removed by the Chinese conglomerate.

It was a symbolic moment in Wolves’ recent history and since then, his replacement and namesake Nathan Shi (no relation) has set about resetting the relationship between the club and its angry supporter base.

So far, so good. Nathan Shi has met several times with supporters’ groups and, according to those present, made the right noises.

Sources at the Compton Park training ground, where all Wolves’ senior figures are based day-to-day, speaking anonymously to protect relationships like all those featured in this article, also report that the new interim chairman has made a positive impression on staff.

Jeff Shi was respected for his financial knowledge but became known for a reluctance to take advice from those more qualified in other areas of club operations.

Nathan Shi has been a more collaborative presence, and there is a general belief that his interim appointment might become a permanent position.

In what felt like the result of his first three months of assessing the task ahead, he issued a statement in March promising big reductions in season-ticket prices. “We are changing the way we do things at Wolves,” he added. “It must always be football first.”

That could only be viewed as a tacit criticism of his predecessor, who incurred the wrath of match-going UK-based fans by putting the development of Fosun’s esports business, other non-football ventures and the growth of the overseas fanbase at the forefront of his plans.

A message to supporters from Nathan Shi. pic.twitter.com/MFN6EzPXUo

— Wolves (@Wolves) April 20, 2026

Nathan Shi’s words have generally been well-received, but the success of his tenure will be judged on actions. In attempting to manage Wolves back in the Championship, he would be taking on quite a challenge.

The state of the club’s finances was laid bare up to a point this month with the publication of their 2024-25 accounts, which showed a £15.3million ($21m) loss despite a club-record £117m in player profits.

Income has already dropped in recent seasons due to lower Premier League finishes and, last season, fewer live games on television.

This season, broadcast income will likely drop again, with each Premier League place expected to be worth more than £3million in Premier League prize money, meaning a drop from 16th place last season to 19th or 20th this term will reduce merit-based income by between £10m and £15m. That drop-off should be, at least in part, mitigated by the start of a new Premier League TV cycle this season, and the increased revenues it brings.

Ladislav Krejci’s permanent move from Girona will cost around another £20million, although Wolves brought in a net figure of around £70m on player trading in January and will increase that figure in this season’s accounts if they sell squad members before the end of June.

Ladislav Krejci’s loan from Girona is set to become a permanent deal in the summer (Carl Recine/Getty Images)

But next season will bring the most dramatic reduction of all as the lucrative tap of Premier League broadcast income begins to be turned off.

Even with a ‘parachute payment’ amounting to 55 per cent of a basic Premier League broadcast allocation in year one in the Championship, Wolves’ turnover can be expected to drop well below the nine-figure sums top-flight clubs can bring in.

In addition, Wolves anticipate a drop of around 30 per cent in this season’s £14million season-ticket income due to the promised price reductions.

It is a decision that Wolves are comfortable with in the bigger picture, with Nathan Shi having acknowledged mistakes in previous pricing, and Wolves hope lower prices will bring more sellout crowds and a better atmosphere. But it will have inevitable consequences.

Players’ contracts include wage-reduction clauses amounting to roughly 50 per cent in the event of relegation and Wolves will make further savings when some of the higher earners inevitably move on, but there will still be a gap between income and expenditure.

That is expected to be filled through a combination of transfer income and help from Fosun who, according to Nathan Shi in his statement, stand ready with “support and long-term commitment”.

Yet, as with every club relegated from the Premier League, the first two years will be crucial for Wolves, with parachute payments of 55 per cent of equal-share Premier League income in year one and 45 per cent in year two providing a useful financial buffer.

In the current 2025-26 season, year-one and year-two parachute payments are expected to be £49million and £40m.

That means Wolves will likely hold one of the bigger wage bills in next season’s Championship, but it is not expected to be as high as some in recent years — Leicester City’s wage bill in the Championship topped £100million, as did Leeds’ salaries when they were promoted last year.

In year three, the parachute figure drops to 20 per cent (£18m current) and in year four to zero, necessitating even more drastic cuts, so while winning back hearts and minds and ensuring finances remain stable, Wolves also need to build a squad capable of winning promotion in the next two seasons.

Any players signed from this summer onwards will be given contracts that reflect potential income drops in years three and four outside of the Premier League. Edwards has all but achieved his personal mission of securing the chance to lead the proposed fightback. He was appointed partly with next season in mind but a disastrous end to this season could still have made that plan untenable.

Rob Edwards was appointed with the 2026-27 season in mind (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

So far, Edwards has avoided the level of embarrassment that would lead Wolves to reconsider their plans, but heavy defeats in their last two games — at West Ham and Leeds — have fired up the sections of the Wolves fans skeptical about his suitability.

After his tricky start, Edwards instilled enough competitiveness and organisation into a previously failing team to earn himself some credit, with memorable wins against West Ham, Aston Villa and Liverpool at Molineux. But even with those victories, a table based on results since Edwards’ appointment still puts Wolves 18th in the table on 15 points from 22 games, with only Tottenham and Burnley below them.

Even if the table only included results since Christmas, when Edwards’ side began to produce better performances, they are 18th, albeit just two points below 17th-placed Crystal Palace.

So, while there is little doubt performances have improved since Edwards replaced Pereira, there will be supporters who claim the improvement has been too marginal. Others will reserved judgement on Edwards because the squad and situation he took on was so desperate.

Edwards’ limited success has come with counter-attacking football as well as building on improving Wolves’ defence, but next season he plans to change the style of play for the Championship.

“I want us to be more on the front foot, more aggressive,” he told a press conference last week. “We want to be better in every aspect in terms of formations and that sort of stuff. We’ve got a good idea of that and of how that affects the recruitment.

“We are pretty clear in our minds on how we want to look. We want to win games of football ultimately, but we want to try and do it in a good way that’s aggressive and I’d like a fast game.”

Next, Edwards and technical director Matt Jackson have a squad to construct. Their hope and belief is that they can build on the sales of around £80million worth of players January, with just Adam Armstrong (£7million plus £2million in add-ons) and Angel Gomes (on loan from Marseille) arriving.

Other players will be sold before the start of next season, but Edwards and Jackson believe their January deals and the ensuing wage bill reductions will enable them to move early for top targets in the summer, irrespective of the timing of other departures.

Adam Armstrong was a rare addition in January (George Wood/Getty Images)

While the World Cup will delay all transfer business and it is not feasible to avoid late-in-the-window deals altogether, Wolves hope the core of Edwards’ squad for next season will be assembled in time to complete pre-season as a group.

“The recruitment is vital at any football club; you live and die by it,” Edwards told a press conference last week. “So we need to get the summer right. We knew there was a huge challenge when we came in and we’ve had one transfer window. It was never all going to be fixed in one window.

“We need time and everyone understands that. We (the club) have made mistakes over a number of years now and we need to try to correct that.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do, but I’m encouraged.”

Brazil international midfield duo Joao Gomes and Andre are regarded as certain to depart, potentially for big fees, and others are likely to leave too — from long-serving players, including goalkeeper Jose Sa and striker Hwang Hee-chan, to more recent arrivals, such as David Moller Wolfe.

There is an option to sign Angel Gomes permanently but, realistically, they would only activate it if either the Marseille loanee accepted a significant salary reduction or if Wolves had a deal to sell him on quickly at a profit.

Then there are players from last summer’s dismal spell of recruitment — Jackson Tchatchou and Tolu Arokodare — and from previous failed deals — Marshall Munetsi and Nasser Djiga — for whom the club would like to recoup transfer fees.

Some might need integrating into Edwards’ Championship plans if the right deals cannot be found, although the desire to find a club for Arokodare will be heightened with the Nigeria international subject to internal club discipline after a physical altercation with Mateus Mane following the West Ham defeat earlier this month.

Tolu Arokodare could move this summer (Paul Harding/Getty Images)

The same applies to goalkeeper Sam Johnstone, who has made only five league appearances under Edwards, but might find starting vacancies at Premier League clubs limited, and Ki-Jana Hoever, who has enjoyed mixed fortunes in various loan spells at Championship clubs.

Hoever’s fellow loanees — Tommy Doyle, Boubacar Traore and Sasa Kalajdzic — are all expected back for pre-season.

Doyle’s Championship experience with Sheffield United and Birmingham City means he will probably be part of Edwards’ squad plans, while Traore and Kalajdzic’s injury records make their futures less certain, although both may get another chance at Wolves if no buyers can be found.

Fer Lopez, the 21-year-old Spaniard who signed last summer but looked ill-prepared for the demands of the Premier League, is most likely to be loaned out again with the potential to return at a later date, and the same is true of Enso Gonzalez, who needs regular games after an injury-hit season at Molineux.

Matt Doherty is out of contract in the summer and, while his experience might be useful in the Championship, a new contract offer for a 34-year-old unlikely to start every game would only be forthcoming on significantly reduced terms.

Dan Bentley should stay as backup to either Johnstone or a new No 1, and Armstrong has already been earmarked as a key player and vital goalscorer.

Beyond the names certain or likely to leave, Wolves would like some key players to stay and form the core of a new-look squad.

They include defenders Yerson Mosquera, Santiago Bueno, Krejci, Toti Gomes, wing-backs Hugo Bueno and Pedro Lima, wide player Rodrigo Gomes and midfielder Jean-Ricner Bellegarde.

Wolves believe they have a realistic chance of keeping each of them, but are equally aware they might receive offers for any of these players that are tough to turn down, especially if the players express a desire to move on. The chances of the club keeping everyone they want to keep are slim.

The same expectations apply to Mane, the academy graduate who has emerged as the creative shining light of Edwards’ reign.

Wolves have no plans to sell the 18-year-old forward, who is contracted until 2029, and hope he will be keen to help lead them back to the Premier League — but they also know a large offer from one of the Premier League’s heavyweight clubs could turn his head and force them to reconsider their position.

So with so many moving parts, the picture for Edwards, Jackson, Nathan Shi or whoever else Fosun might appoint is far from clear. The summer promises to be hectic and unpredictable.

The only advantage they have enjoyed is the rare, dubious luxury of having many months to prepare for this.