FA chief: No deal for Wembley till autumn
WEMBLEY won’t be sold until autumn at the earliest, FA chairman Greg Clarke claimed as he responded yesterday to FA Council concerns about the proposed £1billion deal.
In an attempt to take the sting out of criticism of the sale, Clarke wrote a letter answering 23 questions from FA councillors about Shahid Khan’s bid.
He promised that the stadium would remain the home of English football and that naming rights would not be sold. The deal will be top of the agenda at Tuesday’s Council meeting and Clarke is aware some of its 127 members are fiercely opposed.
He admitted that the sale of the national stadium was ‘an emotive subject’ and that ‘strong views on all sides of the debate’ are expected.
However, he insisted that talks with billionaire Khan, who owns Fulham and nFL side Jacksonville Jaguars, are still at an early stage and it would be autumn before any decisions are made.
‘We are a long way from any decision on a potential sale,’ he wrote. ‘The process with the potential buyer is at a very early stage and we are currently in preliminary discussions.
‘However, as expected, the offer has generated a great number of questions, concerns and speculation.’
After news of the bid broke, former Premier League chairman Sir Dave Richards told Sportsmail there could be a vote of no confidence in the FA Board.
Yet Clarke wrote: ‘This offer is being considered because the FA Board believes it to be serious and credible. It represents a potential opportunity to invest in the game’s no 1 challenge: the poor state of community football facilities, while not undermining Wembley’s status as the home of English football.
‘ There are, of course, many questions to be resolved if a deal is to take place, but the Board had a responsibility to consider the offer further.’