Close Menu
The Stadium BusinessThe Stadium Business
  • News
  • Projects
  • Operations
  • Business
  • Job Listings
    • Job Dashboard
  • Insights
  • Meetings
    • The Stadium Business Summit
    • Design & Development Summit
    • The Stadium Business Asia
    • The Ticketing Business Forum
    • The Ticketing Business Asia
  • Regions
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
LATEST:
  • Hill Dickinson lands naming rights to Everton’s new stadium
  • Everton bids farewell to Goodison Park
  • Bears shifting stadium focus back to Arlington Heights
  • Ligue 1 attendances continue to rise
  • PMY Group to power World Technology Games
  • People on the move: Legends, PSG and more
YouTube LinkedIn Flickr
Register for #SBS25
The Stadium BusinessThe Stadium Business
  • News
  • Projects
  • Operations
  • Business
  • Job Listings
    • Job Dashboard
  • Insights
  • Meetings
    • The Stadium Business Summit
    • Design & Development Summit
    • The Stadium Business Asia
    • The Ticketing Business Forum
    • The Ticketing Business Asia
  • Regions
Subscribe
The Stadium BusinessThe Stadium Business
Home»Finance»Odsal Stadium, Racecourse Ground projects dealt Levelling Up blows

Odsal Stadium, Racecourse Ground projects dealt Levelling Up blows

Championship rugby league club Bradford Bulls and National League football team Wrexham have pledged to drive forward with their stadium plans after they failed to gain funding support from the Government’s Levelling Up scheme.
Rob RidleyBy Rob Ridley20th January 20234 Mins Read Finance 430 Views
Odsal Stadium
Share
Facebook LinkedIn Twitter Email WhatsApp Copy Link

Championship rugby league club Bradford Bulls and National League football team Wrexham have pledged to drive forward with their stadium plans after they failed to gain funding support from the Government’s Levelling Up scheme.

More than 100 projects, including The Sage, a new arena and conference centre on Gateshead Quayside, were this week awarded a share of £2.1bn (€2.39bn/$2.6bn) from Round 2 of the Government’s flagship Levelling Up Fund.

The investment intends to benefit millions of people across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland and spread opportunity to historically overlooked areas, but the Bulls and Wrexham projects were among those that had their applications rejected.

Bradford Council in September spelled out plans to transform Odsal Stadium into the largest covered stadium in England, as part of ongoing efforts to revitalise the historic venue.

The reimagined home of the Bulls, along with a regional skills centre for the sport, is envisioned to form part of a new complex for elite sports which aims to put the West Yorkshire city back at the heart of the 13-a-side code.

The plans would lead to the delivery of a world-class training complex for elite sports in Odsal accompanied by a skills, training and education centre for rugby league and a new 25,000-capacity home for the Bulls, which could host international matches and significant domestic matches such as the semi-finals of the Challenge Cup.

The project had sought £50m in Levelling Up funding, but all four bids proposed by the Council were turned down. In response the Bulls said: “It goes without saying that we are disappointed with the decision, but not entirely surprised. It has certainly not diminished our resolve to provide the club, its supporters, and the city with the appropriate modern facility that they are deserving of. 

“This is a setback but categorically not the end of the road. We await formal communication and an explanation from the City of Bradford Metropolitan Council about their proposed next steps in regenerating the South Bradford gateway including the former Richard Dunn Sports Centre and the world famous Odsal Stadium. 

“The only real failure is giving up and we are not about to do that.”

Bradford Council Leader, Susan Hinchcliffe, stated: “Our unfunded Levelling projects are ready to go and we are now looking at all options to see how they can be progressed without this Government support.”

Racecourse Ground

Meanwhile, the Wrexham Gateway project, which includes redevelopment of the Racecourse Ground, was not among the 11 Welsh projects receiving Government funding.

In November, the club was granted permission to construct a new 5,500-capacity stand at its stadium to replace the Kop end. The new stand, which will revert the Racecourse Ground to a four-sided stadium, has been a priority for co-chairmen Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds since they became owners of the club in February 2021.

The club is making a significant contribution towards the new stand after already purchasing the freehold of the Racecourse Ground. However, Levelling Up funding was also sought, which has not proved successful.

Speaking to the club’s official website, executive chairman Humphrey Ker said: “The announcement that the club wouldn’t be receiving any financial support from UK Government to help with the construction of the new Kop stand was received with bitter disappointment by all of us that have worked for 18 months to try and secure the Levelling Up Fund assistance.

“I have seen many and varied responses to the news, from the crowing of rival fans to the understandable disappointment of those who felt, as we did, that this was the fastest way to access the necessary funds in a low-risk fashion.

“I will say, I’ve seen some people turn their ire on Wrexham County Borough Council, but any such anger is entirely misplaced. WCBC have been excellent partners throughout this process, as have Glyndwr University, Welsh Government and the Welsh FA and collectively we remain as committed to the delivery of the new Kop Stand as ever. This decision was made by the UK Government. 

“We have… a Plan B. The Kop will rise again, it will just have to do so via a different method to the one for which we had so long planned.”

The Council had hoped to secure Levelling Up funding for the western side of the Gateway project, which is the Kop stand redevelopment. It also includes groundworks for a hotel, potential conference facilities and car parking.

Bradford Bulls Levelling Up Odsal Stadium Racecourse Ground Stadium Redevelopment Wrexham AFC
Follow on Google News Follow on RSS
Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email WhatsApp Copy Link
Previous ArticleLevy to deliver ‘elevated’ F&B experience at Oriole Park
Next Article Green light for Ireland’s first indoor velodrome
Rob Ridley

Related Posts

EMEA

Council ends negotiations over Salford Community Stadium sale

16th May 2025138 Views
EMEA

Redwood completes acquisition of Reading, SCL Stadium

15th May 2025
Design & Development

Missouri counters Kansas’ play for Chiefs, Royals

14th May 2025220 Views

Get this News delivered to your inbox

Top Posts

Hill Dickinson lands naming rights to Everton’s new stadium

19th May 20253 Mins Read

Everton bids farewell to Goodison Park

19th May 20253 Mins Read
YouTube LinkedIn Flickr
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Job Listings
  • Contact Us
Copyright © 2025 Xperiology. All rights reserved.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

X We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However you may visit Settings to provide a controlled consent.
Read More Settings ACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
__cf_bm30 minutesThis cookie, set by Cloudflare, is used to support Cloudflare Bot Management.
__lc_cid2 yearsThis is an essential cookie for the website live chat box to function properly.
__lc_cst2 yearsThis cookie is used for the website live chat box to function properly.
__oauth_redirect_detectorpastThis cookie is used to recognize the visitors using live chat at different times inorder to optimize the chat-box functionality.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Advertisement" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
last_pys_landing_page7 daysAnonymous cookie used to facilitate the 'PixelYourSite' plugin which manages our analytical services.
last_pysTrafficSource7 daysAnonymous cookie used to facilitate the 'PixelYourSite' plugin which manages our analytical services.
pys_first_visit7 daysAnonymous cookie used to facilitate the 'PixelYourSite' plugin which manages our analytical services.
pys_landing_page7 daysAnonymous cookie used to facilitate the 'PixelYourSite' plugin which manages our analytical services.
pys_session_limit1 hourAnonymous cookie used to facilitate the 'PixelYourSite' plugin which manages our analytical services.
pys_start_sessionsessionAnonymous cookie used to facilitate the 'PixelYourSite' plugin which manages our analytical services.
pysTrafficSource7 daysAnonymous cookie used to facilitate the 'PixelYourSite' plugin which manages our analytical services.
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
CookieDurationDescription
CONSENT2 yearsYouTube sets this cookie via embedded youtube-videos and registers anonymous statistical data.
vuid2 yearsVimeo installs this cookie to collect tracking information by setting a unique ID to embed videos to the website.
advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
CookieDurationDescription
VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE5 months 27 daysA cookie set by YouTube to measure bandwidth that determines whether the user gets the new or old player interface.
YSCsessionYSC cookie is set by Youtube and is used to track the views of embedded videos on Youtube pages.
yt-remote-connected-devicesneverYouTube sets this cookie to store the video preferences of the user using embedded YouTube video.
yt-remote-device-idneverYouTube sets this cookie to store the video preferences of the user using embedded YouTube video.
Save & Accept