Northampton Town say the land behind the East Stand has been sold as part of a deal that leaves the club debt free. Former chairman Kelvin Thomas says the transaction helped wipe out the debt, ending a long-running issue around the Sixfields site.
The land deal and the debt
Thomas said Sports Alpha Capital took a majority shareholding in Northampton Town last month, then moved ahead with the land deal. The site behind the East Stand was a 19-acre, 7.7-hectare warehouse development, and Thomas said: "The football club benefited from it by writing off all the debt."
He also said, "So, in the end, it's worked out a very good deal for the club, and it's what we always said the football club would benefit from the land transaction."
The debt figure attached to the story was £20m, but Thomas said the land was not sold for anything like that amount. He also said some debt was written off by the owners, so the exact purchase price has not been set out publicly.
Sixfields finally has an ending
The land sat behind the East Stand at Sixfields Stadium, where the partially constructed area was finished in 2025. Thomas described it as "probably been the most debated piece of land ever in the country," and this deal finally closes that chapter.
A company called Neneside, controlled by GRS Group, bought the land. GRS Group constructed the East Stand, and former AC Milan, Chelsea and Brazil forward Alexandre Pato is among Sports Alpha Capital's investors.
Thomas's line on the outcome was simple enough, he said: "It's been said many times if we end up with an East Stand and debt free, then it's a good place, and that's where we got to."
Northampton now go forward with the East Stand complete and the debt cleared, after a sale of land that covered 19 acres behind the stadium.
Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
