Well, I find it hard to believe that "where we play" next season has only just come to the table....but according to reports that's the situation.
It's being banded about that we'll play at Leicester or Stoke next season....both an hours drive away. That's just not acceptable - is it ????
Mel Morris is allegedly still a Rams fan....so I hope he's pulling out all the stops to get this sorted. If we dont play at Pride Park Stadium next season who's going to use it....surely it just becomes a White Elephant ???
It's been mooted that the Council will buy the stadium and lease it back to DCFC. If that's the case, surely there's no reason why Mel Morris should do that ???
Hopefull this'll get resolved. Hopefully Mel will be big enough to realise that he cant take his millions with him when he eventally turns his toes up and does the right thing by DCFC. Whilst I still believe that he always acted (as he saw it) in the best interests of the club, his cavalier attitude to running things has ended up with us getting relegated to L1.
Thoughts please guys ???
Cheers. Terry. UTR
Is Pride Park the new Ricoh Arena ?
posted on 6/5/22
Mel Morris is a Mel Morris fan if the last few years haven't made that patently obvious.
He'll want either what the stadium is 'worth' with interest if payed in installments, or to charge the club for playing at his stadium.
CK doesn't have the kind of cash to buy it outright (and if it were to be paid for 'by the club' that would not put us in good standing for FFP, so the EFL aren't going to agree to that)
If we don't agree, it will be used as an events venue for other things, until we do agree, or he sells it on to somebody else.
posted on 6/5/22
Furthermore, if Mel decides to sell back the stadium at a significantly lower value than he purchased it for, I can see the EFL wanting to reopen their investigation into the sale in the first place.
posted on 6/5/22
A groundshare for a couple of years would suitably devalue the stadium, and make buy-back more likely, and less suspicious to the EFL.
Stoke and Coventry are likely the picks for groundshares, because I can't see the police approving of a groundshare with those down the road on safety grounds, even if it would be far more accessible to the fans.
posted on 6/5/22
Reports via Twitter that the council are trying to facilitate buying the ground.
A ground share cannot be discounted, Coventry eventually got back to their stadium.
posted on 6/5/22
With the cost of living crisis we have I can't see the council buying the stadium going down well with the majority of the population here.
It is good for local business to have footfall in the city, but I think most are looking for better local services, and lower costs for those services, not giving millions to a millionaire for a football stadium.
posted on 6/5/22
Having seen the mess of how events unfolded at the Ricoh in terms of ownership this is not a good place in which we find ourselves.
I doubt a groundshare with Coventry would be sanctioned as they already share with Wasps and so would contravene EFL rules. The rules also stipulate that security of tenure is required beyond the end of the season in which you start, hence the issue with Membership I would imagine.
posted on 6/5/22
It would be an income generator for the Council. They can charge DCFC to use it and they could use it for other purposes when it isn't match day. It would depend on whether the cost of acquiring it outweighed the future income they would get from it.
posted on 6/5/22
Talk is of Stoke or Leicester not Coventry. Personally if we had to ground share I would want Bramhall Lane.
posted on 6/5/22
To me, it’s a no-brainer for DCC to buy, then lease it back.
Financially it will pay for itself - a good investment.
posted on 7/5/22
I thought that if the council bought it then it was conditional on CK to buy it from them ‘eventually’. He just doesn’t want to deal with Mel (having called him a real f*** job when he first got involved).