Bury Supporters Groups agree exclusivity to buy Bury FC and Gigg Lane stadium

Bury FC fans have never stopped hoping

An association of Bury Supporters Groups and Bury-supporting Benefactors have today signed a "Head of Terms" agreement for exclusivity to buy Bury FC and the Gigg Lane stadium. In August 2019, it became clear that Bury FC were in trouble, facing expulsion from the Football League. Owner Steve Dale had missed a series of deadlines to either provide the EFL with evidence of the club's financial viability or conclude a sale. Patience had run thin and eventually ran out when a proposed sale to C&N Sporting Risk collapsed. After 125 years of continued membership, an EFL board stripped Bury of their Football League status - plunging the fanbase and local community into new depths of uncertainty. The club - or the shell that remained - finally entered administration in November 2020, over a year on from their ejection from the Football League. Then came the news that Gigg Lane, two years on from hosting its last competitive game, had been put up for sale by the administrator. Despite this, and all of the pain caused, the love and support for Bury FC has never stopped. Pickup - one of a band of supporters behind Est. 1885, a movement also comprising of legal experts, former club directors and local business owners - have continuously worked alongside Forever Bury, the supporters' trust, as they seek to unite the club's fans as part of a bid to return Bury FC to Gigg Lane. https://twitter.com/FootballJOE/status/1157575888084570114?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1157575888084570114%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.joe.co.uk%2Fsport%2Fbury-fc-a-club-on-the-brink-238158 On Friday (22 October), news broke that an association of Bury Supporters Groups and Bury-supporting Benefactors had agreed a deal for exclusivity to buy Bury FC, as well as the Gigg Lane stadium. The process - which is expected to take up to 2 months to complete - will allow them to begin the process of working with the FA on re-insertion of Bury FC into the footballing pyramid for the start of the 2022/23 season.

Est. 1885 have released a statement updating their fellow supporters on the situation.

The statement read: "We are pleased to announce that an association of Bury Supporters Groups and Bury-supporting Benefactors have today signed a “Head of Terms” agreement for exclusivity to buy Bury F.C. (all memorabilia and intellectual property including trademarks) and the Gigg Lane stadium. "The process to completion is expected to take up to 2 months, which is standard for this kind of transaction.

"During the due-diligence process, we will formalise our previously-stated intention for the club and ground to be held by an organisation that is and will always be majority fan-owned, democratic and debt free.