Northampton Town FC owner announcement coincides with police investigation

Former Oxford United chair Kelvin Thomas is on the verge of acquiring a controlling stake in Northampton Town Football Club (NTFC) just days before the club’s administration hearing.

The League Two club released a statement which revealed that current chair David Cardoza had agreed to sell his stake to Thomas, with legal paperwork expected to be completed before Friday’s (27 November) hearing.

“The club will be in a position to make a further announcement upon such completion,” said the statement.

NTFC owes Northampton Borough Council £10.25m ($15.5m, €14.6m) over the loan for the uncompleted redevelopment of the Sixfields Stadium, which was supposed to include a new hotel and conference centre.

The club, which currently sits third in League Two, also owes HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) £166,000 in unpaid taxes. A winding up petition for the bill will be heard separately on 30 November.

“We are very pleased that we have an agreement. It has been tough for David and Tony Cardoza because they have been with the club a long time,” said Thomas.

“We still have work to do with the rest of the process but working together with the council and the lawyers we expect to get everything done in time for Friday.”

Cardoza said Thomas was “a great owner for the club”.

Shortly before the announcement, Northamptonshire Police released a statement revealing that it was opening an investigation into “alleged financial irregularities” surrounding the council’s loan to the club.

A team of officers served a warrant at Sixfields yesterday afternoon to “secure any documentation which may be relevant to the investigation” after receiving a formal complaint from Northampton Borough Council.

“The football club is being fully cooperative at this stage,” said the statement. “This is likely to be a complex and challenging inquiry and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.”