Sky Blues fan groups table questions for Parliament
Call made for assurance that club will not be moved out of the city regardless of the result of the mediation process.
SEVEN Coventry City fan groups have come up with a list of questions they want a local MP to ask in Parliament this week.
Nuneaton MP Marcus Jones has arranged a debate in Westminster Hall on Wednesday about the continuing uncertainty over the club’s long-term home ground.
A one-year extension was agreed earlier this month between CCFC and their landlords Wasps but group chief executive Nick Eastwood ruled out a further deal beyond the end of next season unless the legal row over the Ricoh Arena had ended.
The football club is challenging the terms of the deal which saw Premiership rugby club Wasps secure Ricoh Arena firm ACL in October 2014. The Sky Blues, Wasps and the council have been ordered to take part in mediation over the longrunning legal battle to avoid a further High Court appeal hearing in May and a possible full judicial review,
Seven fan groups _ Cov Fans Together, Diamond Club, Fight Till the Game Is Won, Jimmy Hill Way, Preservation Sky Blues, Sky Blue Trust and Twist ‘n’ Shout Fanzine have signed a statement calling for “an immediate solution that would allow CCFC to continue playing at the Ricoh on a long-term basis and are also requesting assurance that the club will not be moved out of the city regardless of the result of the mediation process”.
1 If the issue of where Coventry City are to play home games is not resolved within the mediation process, that the EFL and the parties to the dispute – CCFC, Sisu Capital, Wasps and Coventry City Council – may be required urgently to explain the current position to the Select Committee and indicate when and by what means the home ground issue may be resolved.
2 Further, that an account may be obtained from the EFL of the way they have handled the matter of the home ground in accordance with their regulations. In particular, asking them to state, in what, if any, circumstances they might favourably consider a request to approve a home ground outside the City of Coventry in the light of their regulation 13.7.
3 After the previous debate into the Coventry City situation held on 11th October 2016, the Sports Minister initiated an informal mediation process. May this debate be informed what, if any, progress was made in the course of those discussions?
4 Future cases of crisis in the management of football clubs, such as those at Blackpool and Coventry, might be better addressed were the EFL to appoint an independent investigator for each such current case, to look into the circumstances, take evidence from all interested parties, including supporters’ organisations, and make recommendations.
The starement read: “Supporters are anxious that there is no repeat of the situation suffered in 2013 when CCFC stopped playing at the Ricoh and home fixtures were played at Northampton for 12 months, in front of very low attendances. There is no apparent viable alternative to the Ricoh within the Coventry Area for CCFC to fulfil its home fixtures.
“On Saturday 10th February, CCFC played Accrington Stanley in front of a reported attendance of 28,343 spectators which demonstrates that CCFC requires continued access to a stadium with considerable capacity and adequate facilities. We are therefore calling on the following parties to find an immediate solution to enable CCFC to continue playing at the Ricoh on a long-term basis:
CCFC – which is operated by Otium Entertainment Group Limited and its parent company Sky Blues Sports & Leisure Limited; Sisu Capital Limited and its associated company Arvo Master Fund, owners of CCFC; Wasps; Coventry City Council; The English Football League (“EFL”).
Apart from the EFL, these parties are due to participate in a mediation process as instructed by the Court of Appeal, intended to settle a long-running legal dispute concerning the sale of the Ricoh Arena by Coventry City Council to Wasps. This mediation is scheduled to be concluded by the end of March 2018. It therefore appears that the outcome of this process will determine whether CCFC will have an opportunity to play at the Ricoh Arena for seasons commencing August 2019 and beyond.
“As the authority responsible for regulation of such matters, we request that the EFL give immediate assurances to supporters of CCFC that our club will not again be removed from the city whose name it bears, whatever the outcome of the mediation and any continuing legal proceedings involving Wasps and CCFC.
We are grateful to Mr Marcus Jones, MP and other parliamentary colleagues for debating this issue on February 21. We hope that their interest and concern will assist in bringing about a swift resolution to this deeply troubling matter for CCFC supporters.” If meditation is successful everyone should be able to walk away satisfied – and a line would be drawn under the long and bitter dispute.
If it fails, we are heading for a full appeal hearing in May 2018.
That could result in a full judicial review, to analyse the legal arguments around the sale of the stadium to Wasps, in late 2018. It’s possible either side could appeal the result of that – which would likely take the dispute into 2019.