Salford Council Conservative leader says stadium is “burning” cash but leaders say there is clear vision for venue’s future
Salford Community Stadium, home to Salford Red Devils and Sale Sharks(Image: LDRS)
Salford council is facing calls to sell the CorpAcq Stadium – amid claims it is ‘burning’ cash – and spend the money on fixing roads instead. The stadium company, CosCos, is controlled by the town hall after it completed a £7.7m deal with former co-owners Peel in late 2024.
It is home to rugby union club Sale Sharks as well as Salford’s phoenix rugby league team. The Conservative opposition group at Salford council said ownership of the stadium is costing £1.6m a year, according to the council’s finance department.
The Tories are calling for the council to begin the process of selling the ground and to put £1.6m a year towards a ringfenced fund to fix roads and pavements across the city.
The demand has been submitted as an amendment to the council’s budget which is being discussed at a meeting on February 25.
Coun Bob Clarke, leader of Salford Conservative group, said: “It’s outrageous, we couldn’t believe it when we saw the figures.
“I think the mayor had good intentions and wanted to do something for everybody, but if it’s burning through the best part of £1.6m a year, that’s not credible, especially when you ask for more money from the residents [through council tax] and they see this being burned.
“It’s an extra £6,500 a month per ward that we could spend on making things better for everybody, not just the few people that use the stadium. It doesn’t make sense, it’s £1.6m, it’s over £100,000 a month gone.”
A Salford Labour spokesperson defended the party’s move to take full ownership of the ground and surrounding land, which is also known as the Salford Community Stadium.
They said: “Salford Labour was re-elected in 2024 on a manifesto commitment to deliver a rugby strategy for the whole city. Taking full control of Salford Community Stadium is a key part of this vision, helping ensure that professional clubs from both codes continue to play in Salford.
“The stadium was also a key venue for the Women’s Rugby World Cup last year, and as part of our ownership we will continue to explore opportunities to use the stadium for other prestige events.
Salford Mayor Paul Dennett pictured at Salford Community Stadium (Image: Salford council)
“The stadium also provides the foundation for improving the surrounding facilities to support greater grassroots participation in rugby. This will enable residents across the city to benefit from the sporting, social, health and economic advantages the sport brings.”
During the budget meeting next week councillors will also vote on proposals to increase council tax in Salford by 4.99 per cent, adding more than £100 to annual bills for people living in band D properties.
This is part of the council’s revenue budget used to pay for services across the city.
The Conservative group leader said he believes residents will be unhappy at how much the stadium is costing.
He added: “I’m sympathetic to the place the council is in with money after 14 years of cuts which I think went on too long, I was never a fan of it and I do sympathise, but when you see £1.6m a year being wasted something has to be done.
“When people find out what the stadium is losing they’ll be upset.”
When Salford council bought the stadium at the end of 2024, it was expected that land around the ground would be sold for development to finance the purchase.
The move was also seen as a lifeline for former rugby league club Salford Red Devils, but the club ended up being liquidated in 2025 over unpaid debts, ending 152 years of history.
Salford’s phoenix rugby league club continue to play at the stadium, but chief executive Ryan Brierley said in January that there is currently no deal in place with the council and that talks were ongoing.
The Conservative group amendment being debated next week states: ‘Salford City Council owns Salford Community Stadium, which continues to operate at a significant ongoing cost to our residents.
‘The stadium is currently estimated to make a loss of approximately £1.2 million, in addition to approximately £420,000 per year in lost interest on the amount of debt in relation to the stadium, resulting in a total annual cost to the Council of approximately £1.62 million.
‘This represents a substantial recurring financial burden at a time when residents face a 4.99pc increase in council tax, and when the council faces ongoing financial pressures.’
The amendment adds that the council could only sell the stadium in 2028 due to ‘existing financial and contractual arrangements’ in place, but called preparations to sell the ground to ‘begin immediately’.
