Rugby fans are concerned that the Salford Community Stadium takeover announced earlier this year is yet to be completed.
Salford Red Devils, who share the stadium with Sale Sharks, cannot move ahead with new deals to make the club financially secure until the sale is formally signed off and that has not actually happened yet.
Salford City Council has agreed to acquire the other 50 per cent share in the stadium currently owned by Peel Group but the formal legal sale has not gone through.
Until the council becomes the outright owner of the ground, Salford Red Devils cannot go ahead with its own commercial deals to secure its future.
Peter Brady, chairman of the Salford RLFC Supporters Trust. said: “It’s very frustrating, actually, because we’ve been here now for about two, maybe even three years, and we just feel we’re in a sort of limbo land between the powers that be.
“I think fans do accept the fact that the legalities of such a huge purchase is not something you can sign off in five minutes, but when it comes down to it, all we want to do is just support our club and be secure in the future of the club.”
The deal comes at a time of financial difficulty for Salford Red Devils. Only two weeks ago the club had to secure an advance on its funding from the league to ease its cash flow problems.
To our supporters, we understand your concern over the last 24 hours but we were restricted in sharing this until after today’s meeting had taken place.
We appreciate that is frustrating. We intend to keep you informed with the full picture and will provide a more detailed Club…
— Salford Red Devils 👹 (@SalfordDevils) November 21, 2024
A Salford City Council spokesperson said: “This decision to purchase the stadium has been through all the council’s formal decision-making processes, including pre-decision scrutiny and a further scrutiny panel.
“We have engaged members from all parties to make the process as open and transparent as possible.
“Like Salford Red Devils and fans we also want the purchase completed as soon as possible and council officers are working hard through the final legal and financial details.”
Mr Brady, of the Salford RLFC Supporters Trust, said: “This means a lot for a lot of people, and it’s in the blood. We’ve recently celebrated our 150th anniversary, and so we’re ensconced in the whole community aspect.
“You can’t just forget the heritage because of a stadium deal that’s on the cusp of being signed. If that’s not signed, it means that we’re ripping 150 years of the Salford Red Devils out of the Salford heritage”
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