Greenwich Council chief: We’ll oppose any plan to move Charlton Athletic out of the borough

The leader of Greenwich Council has underlined that they would fight any attempts to move Charlton Athletic out of the borough.

There has been continued speculation that some of the parties interested in the SE7 club would like to move out of The Valley and potentially build on that site and also their training base.

The South London Press had been told that the original incarnation of East Street Investments, who took control of the football club in January, thought that was a viable move.

Roland Duchatelet still owns The Valley and the club’s Sparrows Lane training ground. ESI have the option to buy both sites before 2025 but it would cost in excess of £50million.

So far ESI have not been able to get EFL approval for their takeover. The EFL put a transfer embargo on the Addicks at the start of January and that was hardened before the end of the campaign – it now means they can only offer new signings reduced wages of £1,300 a week.

Councillor Danny Thorpe, leader of Greenwich Council, said: “Generations of Royal Greenwich residents have supported Charlton Athletic and they would have been devastated by their relegation. The council has very close ties to the club, especially its Community Trust which has worked with us to coordinate over 1,000 volunteers to deliver food and other vital support to residents during the coronavirus pandemic.

“I wrote to Mr Duchatelet two years ago when there were protests about his ownership and had hoped that winning promotion last year and new ownership would bring about some stability to the club. Sadly that hasn’t happened, and relegation could make things even worse.

“The stadium and training ground sites are designated for specific uses and we would not be interested in any proposals that involved a change of use. Charlton Athletic belongs in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and we will oppose anything that could lead to them being moved out of the borough.”