It is probably a mistake to start with a British cultural reference that is nearly 29 years old, but this is a story about misgivings and mistakes, so it feels apt.

In 1995, the late, great comedian Caroline Aherne had a spoof talk show in which she played a character called Mrs Merton, an elderly lady from Manchester who would ask celebrities disingenuously blunt questions.

“So, what first attracted you to the millionaire Paul Daniels?” was her famous opener to Debbie McGee, the glamorous assistant and wife of the aforementioned TV magician.

A version of that question had been rattling around my head while I tried to find a common thread between the four case studies we have done this week on men who want to buy football clubs.

So, Chris/Dozy/William/Thomas, what first attracted you to the cash business with property assets that would guarantee weeks, if not months, of positive media coverage and a huge dopamine hit from the gratitude of strangers?

Because when you put it like that, it is not hard to see how bidding for football clubs might be addictive/a good smokescreen/useful advertising/worth a go (delete as applicable).

We picked Chris Kirchner, Dozy Mmobuosi, William Storey and Thomas Zilliacus this time, but if there are any streaming giants reading, we could flesh out…

Like a giant hailstorm, the tennis balls bounced up off the turf inside the Select Car Leasing Stadium. A few to begin with and then dozens. More than 200 were thrown in total, bringing play to a standstill for two minutes. At a club used to losing points, here was one being made by Reading’s disaffected supporters.

The League One visit of Bolton Wanderers this month had been targeted as the day fans took a stand against Dai Yongge, the Chinese businessman who has owned Reading since May 2017.

Dai arrived with ambitions to lead Reading back to the Premier League, a level they fell from in 2012-13, but has instead left them hamstrung in the third tier following relegation in May, bound by financial constraints brought on by his folly. Reading’s total losses now stand at £191million ($232m) after five consecutive years where wages have eclipsed income. The club’s women’s team has been sacrificed, being downgraded to a part-time operation this summer.

Reading fans have thrown tennis balls on the pitch during todays game in protest against their ownership.

The travelling Bolton fans applaud their efforts. pic.twitter.com/7yYhtGau3n

— Football Away Days (@FBAwayDays) September 16, 2023

Finding the good in Dai’s six-year reign gets no easier for a club where fans…

Reading Women will revert from a full-time programme to operating on a part-time basis ahead of the 2023-24 season.

The club have cited the “exponentially” growing financial commitments required to run the team, a drop in funding following their relegation from the Women’s Super League and a need to cut costs across the board following the men’s side’s relegation to League One as factors contributing to the decision.

Reading were relegated from the WSL to the Women’s Championship on the final day of the 2022-23 season, bringing an end to their seven-year stay in the top flight. They had been the only side not attached to a Premier League club competing in the WSL during the campaign.

Reading’s men’s side were also relegated this season as they dropped from the Championship to League One after being deducted six points in April following a breach of the English Football League’s financial rules.

According to the club, Reading owner Dai Yongge has “personally” invested £6million into Reading’s women’s team since 2018 and needed to provide just short of £1million to fund the team during the 2022-23 season.

A club statement read: “Ten years ago, funding Reading FC Women cost the club just over £100,000 per year. However, alongside the growth of the…