The owner of rugby league team Huddersfield Giants has shelved plans to purchase The Shay Stadium in West Yorkshire, England.
The BBC said that in March 2025, Calderdale Council approved the sale of The Shay to Ken Davy, OBE.
However, Davy has now pulled out of the sale saying a small minority of people had made it abundantly clear that his involvement was not welcome.
The Huddersfield Giants are an English professional rugby league club from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England (UK). The Giants play their home games at the John Smith’s Stadium and compete in Super League, the top tier of British rugby league.
The 5,108 capacity Shay Stadium in Halifax is the home of FC Halifax Town and rugby league club Halifax Panthers. Calderdale Council approved the sale of The Shay last year.
Campaign group Friends of the Shay, which strongly opposes the sale, had issued a first formal pre-action protocol letter to council solicitors, a step towards mounting a legal challenge to the proposed sale.
Davy said the outcome was “disappointing”, adding that he had planned to develop the stadium into a multi-sport community hub serving the whole of Calderdale, rather than primarily football and rugby supporters.
Opponents of the sale were worried about what would happen if Davy decided to sell further down the line.
In a written statement, Davy said he had informed the council he would “not be progressing” his interest in purchasing the stadium.
Davy said, “From the very beginning I made it absolutely clear to the council, the football and rugby clubs and indeed, the various supporters groups I have met, that I would only continue my interest in the Shay Stadium, and sport in Halifax in general, if my input and involvement was welcome.
“Unfortunately, in the respect of a small minority, it is abundantly clear that this is not the case.”
Davy had also expressed an interest in the ground in order to temporarily move his rugby league side there and share with the existing teams while a new stadium was built in Huddersfield.
Although the existing deal was off, Davy said he would not rule out renting the stadium in the future.
A site for a new stadium to be built for the Giants in Kirklees is still being identified.
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