Cobblers bosses say they will “not be bullied” by the owners of the Ricoh Arena in Coventry, following a letter threatening legal action against the Sixfields club.
Northampton Town FC received a letter from Arena Coventry Limited (ACL), the owners of the 32,600 seat stadium, today threatening them over plans for the Sky Blues to play in Northampton over the next three years.
The proposal was “reluctantly” ratified by the Football League this week.
ACL claims Northampton Town is “inducing” Coventry City to move away from the Ricoh, breaking a 25-year lease for Coventry City FC for the club to play its home fixtures at the Ricoh Arena, signed in 2006.
The letter is believed to threaten to sue Northampton Town FC in the event of Coventry playing a ‘home’ game in Northampton.
However, the issue is further clouded by the fact that Coventry City Football Club Ltd, the company that signed the agreement, remains in administration.
Cobblers have not entered an agreement with Coventry City Football Club Ltd, but instead have negotiated a deal with potential buyers of the Sky Blues.
In a statement released to the Chron today, David Cardoza, chairman of Cobblers, said “Northampton Town Football Club confirms that Arena Coventry Limited (ACL) has threatened the club with legal action in respect of Coventry City FC playing at Sixfields Stadium.
“The club was approached by Coventry City to play at Sixfields, so that Coventry City could fulfil its fixtures. The Football League has endorsed this arrangement.
“The threatened action by ACL is without any legal merit and is not conducive to the greater good of the game. Northampton Town Football Club will not be bullied or threatened.”
However, James Powell, ACL’s lawyer, told the Chron today that any deal to relocate Coventry City would breach the contract.
He said: “We don’t know the details of the deal but we want to be sure that Northampton Town understand there is still a contact in place between ACL and Coventry City Football Club Ltd for Coventry City to play at the Ricoh Arena.
“Just because Coventry City Football Club Ltd have gone into administration doesn’t mean that is no longer in place.” He added: “If Northampton are part of an inducement of Coventry City playing at Sixfields then there could be significant damages and losses incurred by ACL under the contact they have got and they may well want to seek compensation for that.”
Meanwhile, Police and Crime Commissioner Adam Simmonds has said the move could cost Northamptonshire Police £100,000 “from the get-go”, with match-day policing costs adding up after that.
He took part in a summit in Northampton yesterday, called by Northampton Borough Council. Speaking today he said there was “a lot more to do” to prepare for the move.
Mr Simmonds said: “There is still a lot of work to do.
“There are things to sort out in terms of traffic and transport.
“Obviously we want people to come to Northampton, I want this town to be a success but we can’t leave policing matters to the end.
“I am not trying to be a party pooper, but we should have plans in place.”
Coventry City supporters are making another trip to Northampton tomorrow to protest against their club’s deal to play their home games at Sixfields. A group of fans will be gathering around Sixfields at 10am to erect banners and signs at the A4500 and A5076 traffic islands. The fans have informed the police about the protests, which they say will be “completely peaceful” - and are calling on supporters of other clubs to join them in a show of solidarity.