Oxford sign two-year extension at Kassam Stadium
Oxford United and Firoka Group have reached an agreement for the U's to stay at the Kassam Stadium for a maximum of two further years. Their previous licence had been due to expire at the end of next season but will now run until at least June 2027.There will be an option to extend the deal for another year, which will be conditional on planning permission for the club's proposed new stadium being granted.Both parties have said that no further extensions or new lease agreements after this one will be possible. The U's are tenants at the Kassam, which is owned by former chairman Firoz Kassam and his Firoka Group.The Championship club are looking to build a new 16,000-seater venue and submitted a planning application to Cherwell District Council in February last year.The council will not be making a decision on the plans until June at the earliest."The club was facing some very difficult decisions on where to play after our licence expired in June 2026 and before our new stadium is ready," Oxford chairman Grant Ferguson said."There has been a massive amount of work going on behind the scenes to get us to this point and I would like to place on record my thanks to Firoz Kassam who personally oversaw the discussions which led to this short-term extension being signed."Agreeing this goes well beyond the terms of our existing arrangement and demonstrates Firoz's support for the club, particularly given this could potentially delay his plans for the site. "We can now move forward with certainty as both parties look to the future."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
25 minutes ago
- BBC News
Lindisfarne Festival to go ahead after new organiser appointed
An annual coastal music festival will go ahead despite uncertainty over its organisers, it has been behind the Lindisfarne Festival in Northumberland have appointed its founder, Conleth Maenpaa, to ensure it goes ahead on the last weekend of decision came after original organiser Wannasee, which was behind numerous festivals in the region, announced it was speaking to liquidators and cancelling other news has been welcomed by ticketholders and businesses, with headliners at the Beal Farm event set to include Armand Van Halen, Doves and The Waterboys. Mr Maenpaa, who organised the first eight Lindisfarne Festivals, told the BBC he was "absolutely gutted" when he heard the 10th anniversary of the event might not take place this summer as other events were being axed."Not just for the punters who have grown to love it but also for the hardworking staff and for the volunteers and all the traders and contractors who rely on this," he was approached by the festival's investors, who are also behind Hardwick Festival in Sedgefield, County Durham, to take it over after Wannasee, which ran Lindisfarne last year, started having issues."We can't let something like this go to waste," Mr Maenpaa said. "It's important to everybody and to the region as well'. Bernard Rostron, who has sold ethically sourced goods at his Priya stall since its first year, said the festival's cancellation would have had a big said: "The knock-on is on the people who work with us because they lose a wage, but there's another impact on the suppliers."His store room near Penrith in Cumbria is filled with handmade items of clothing and bags from suppliers in places like Kathmandu and Rajasthan, who rely on his Rostron said four of the festivals he attended last year were not happening in 2025 and there was uncertainty about another four. He said: "Business isn't what it used to be."In Kathmandu, for instance, for one of our jacket suppliers, we are his only European customer now which is quite frightening for him, so that hurts us given that we care so deeply about our supply chain." Avid festival-goer Kevin Cooper reckons he went to 150 gigs and events last year and he would be sorry to not be able to attend home in Burnopfield, County Durham, is testament to his passion for music, the walls lined with CDs, vinyls and gig posters."Pre-Covid there was an explosion of festivals and I think post-Covid there's been a winding down of a number of them," he said he was "very disappointed" when festivals were cancelled. "Things like this damage consumer confidence but I do worry about what it does to the music industry which, while I'm not part of it, is very much a part of my life." Mr Maenpaa said people could have confidence in Lindisfarne going said: "We've got a backer who is very capable of looking after everything. "We've got everything in place - there maybe a few alterations that we don't know about because we are jumping in at the last minute, but we will put everything on and we will have most of the old team back so everything will be absolutely brilliant and we'll make it the best festival we possibly can."Wannasee has been contacted for comment. Follow BBC North East on X and Facebook and BBC Cumbria on X and Facebook and both on Nextdoor and Instagram.
BBC News
26 minutes ago
- BBC News
Earley MP Yuan Yang praises school's money-saving solar panels
A school will have more money to spend on education thanks to government-funded solar panels, an MP has government announced in March that it was investing £180m installing solar panels in schools and hospitals across the first 11 schools have now had them put in - including Whiteknights Primary School in Reading, which is expected to save around £4,500 a year as a result."Overall that means less money spent on energy and heating bills [and] more money to for the school to actually spend on students' education," said MP for Earley and Woodley Yuan Yang. The Labour MP visited the school on Monday, alongside climate minister Kerry McCarthy. She said she spoke to schoolchildren about climate change and how it should be tackled. "They wanted to talk about all sorts of things, from saving energy to transport," she said."It's often the children who asked the most incitive questions about climate change and the future."Climate minister Kerry McCarthy said the fact schools could save money on their bills was proof that the transition to green power could directly benefit communitiesGreat British Energy is a new publicly owned company set up by the Labour Yang said the solar panels, which would continue generating electricity throughout the weekends and school holidays to be sold back to the national grid, were "a really key investment"."All of this together is part of a diverse energy mix and the more different sources of renewable generation then the more robust - the more secure - an energy system is," she said. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
BBC News
26 minutes ago
- BBC News
Tate Liverpool gallery gets £12m cash boost to reopen by 2027
A gallery that has been shut for two years due to problems finding funding has been given a £12m grant that could help it reopen by 2027. Tate Liverpool has been handed the cash boost from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport to continue its refurbishment of the gallery on Royal Albert said the funding, alongside donations from the Garfield Weston Foundation, and the Ross Warburton Charitable Trust, will help the project stay on track for its Secretary Lisa Nandy said: "The transformation of Tate Liverpool will mean this amazing cultural venue can continue to flourish for future generations." Tate Liverpool's renovation will see the gallery "reimagined for the 21st century" by opening up spaces to display its collection and host world-class exhibitions, those behind the project have include a new public 'Art Hall' on the ground floor of the site, which first opened in 1988, and a greener gallery to reduce running costs and end the building's reliance on fossil Legg, Tate Liverpool director, said the "bold transformation" would help boost the visitor economy and act as a catalyst for regeneration on the waterfront. In May, Tate Liverpool announced the first major exhibition of artist Chila Kumari Singh Burmanm, focused on celebrating the rich culture of the North, will form part of the reopening programme. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
