Issued: 09/07/2013

For immediate release

Supporters Direct is deeply concerned by the decision of The Football League Board today to permit the preferred bidders for Coventry City FC to 'relocate' the Club to Northampton for three seasons.

The decision to approve the removal of a Club from its community in this way will dismay all of those who have suffered the same fate, including supporters of Wimbledon, Charlton and Brighton & Hove Albion. That the decision has come at the behest of a City of London Hedge Fund – SISU Capital – which is trying to recover its losses from an ill-judged investment makes it doubly worse in our view.

We also note that SISU has declined to release a survey of fans, which it is believed shows near universal opposition to playing outside of Coventry, citing a Football League request not to release 'sensitive commercial information'. The League has denied making such a request in relation to this information. We call on those concerned to release it immediately.

This decision also comes at a time when there is intense scrutiny on the regulation of football on the part of Sports Minister Hugh Robertson MP, MPs on the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, and many people across the country. The threat of legislation hangs over the game should change not occur, and incidents like this show us why that is the case.