As I see it, The RFL bought Odsal, to stop developers from buying it and turfing out the Bulls. Nothing has actually changed for Bradford, apart from who they make the cheque for the rent to.

They might have a more secure future and a more understanding landlord, but they haven't been bailed out of anything.

No corruption, no secret agendas. Just a decent bit of business for the RFL.

Bless.

Who said the council has sold the stadium?

I do not for one minute believe they have.

I believe the Bulls have probably sold - or transferred - the long leasehold to the RFL. So it is now the RFL that has the long lease with the council. With the council's blessing.

What then follows, regarding the new underlease and its terms, is - I suspect - all a matter of cashflow timing, to stop a club with no sugar daddy from going out of business and buy it some time to get the long term on a more sound footing.

I suppose the RFL COULD see the club go into Administration, which could mean - like Wakey and London and Crusaders and Widnes various non-SL clubs - a big loss to the taxpayer and to other suppliers. You know, the route that allows a phoenix to rise, free of its obligations and liabilities? The way the RFL has allowed numerous clubs to do? Something that, as a taxpayer, I could consider a disgrace. Or maybe all the parties regard that as the last thing the game needs right now, and if it can be avoided then all well and good?

I also don't expect the RFL to be more than a temporary landlord. Same as at some other clubs.

Incidentally, I must have missed somewhere the mechanism by which "other clubs' fans" pay some sort of a levy to the RFL for them to use (or abuse)?

Have the RFL used cash ( that would be earning interest ) ?

Have the RFL borrowed ( that will incur interest ) ?

Who will stand this cost?

3 simple questions

I don't know.

The RFL

Nobody. But the RFL has clearly stated that it has bought the stadium. It hasn't said that it has bought the leasehold to the stadium; but that it has bought the stadium. Who owned the stadium to sell it? The Council? If the Council owned the stadium then they must have sold it in order for it to have been bought by the RFL.


Now you're being silly. We all pay into the pot. If we buy a ticket for the CC final or for an international, for example, we pay into the pot.

All sounds very admirable BUT lots of conortations for the rest of our sport, so the RFL are paying the lease to the Council???
As for subsidised try the Championship clubs getting nothing from the RFL like the Premier Sports deal - nowt.
Yet they have given you money to pay rent for Odsal or have given somebody money somewhere either way???
To me thats a subsidy at other clubs expense simple as.
Hey I have no wish to see a fellow RL club go out of business but where did all your money go in your heyday, did you ever do owt to help your struggling neighbours like us and Keighley when you put a huge nail almost in our coffins by taking fans away from those towns by poaching them actively doing so too?? Also lots of other clubs have had to almost die to get any kind of help and usually only a small amount from the RFL.
This is a Bradford Bulls problem not the RFLs, short term help yer but not taking on a ground or as you are saying ground lease, look how many RL clubs there are could the RFL afford to pay all of them??
No.

If you are going to pass opinion you should know

1 possibly

2 possibly

But one of them is a definate

3 either the RFL, or the Bradford Bulls, but one of them is a definate

So either the Bulls rent has gone up, or the RFL are bailing them out with money that should be going elsewhere

But surely they have been bailed out.

They’ve been bailed out of losing their ground

Oh the irony, the RFL buy Odsal, what happened to a level playing field?

Good news IMO, imagine Odsal in ten years time with a roof that goes all the way around it - not only would it look pretty epic from above, but it would also keep people from freezing their nads off in the rain!

Explain how we were going to lose our ground, please?

When we held a long lease?