Huddersfield Giants’ purchase of The Shay has been approved by Calderdale Council but with some key conditions set.
The stadium sale will not go through immediately but terms have been agreed to allow Huddersfield Giants owner Ken Davy to purchase the ground, which the Super League club will use whilst they build a new home stadium elsewhere.
Currently, the Giants play their home games at the John Smith’s Stadium but the 20,000+ capacity ground simply doesn’t suit the club’s fan base with Davy admitting that they need to move.
He first started discussing a new ground late last year before offering to buy Halifax’s The Shay and use it as a temporary ground whilst the Giants’ new stadium was built.
That was approved at a Calderdale Council meeting on Monday but the sale is subject to a covenant that the ground can only be used for sport.
The ground is currently used by both Halifax Town football club and Halifax Panthers, however, from 2026 it will also be used by Huddersfield Giants.
A new artificial turf will be laid whilst Davy will also set about other improvements to ensure that the stadium is up to Super League standards.
Per The Huddersfield Hub, Councillor Silvia Dacre spoke on the sale and spoke to Davy’s reputation after fans of Halifax Town had launched a petition to stop Davy’s purchase.
Speaking on Davy, Dacre said: “Ken Davy is not a man who has appeared from nowhere with obscure sources of funding which often happens on these occasions.
“His past actions show he understands professional sports clubs and he has a track record of buying and maintaining sports clubs when they would otherwise have gone out of existence.”
