QPR welcomes news that Council will “bend over backwards” to keep the club in the borough

By Jacob Phillips, local democracy reporter

QPR has welcomed the news that Hammersmith and Fulham Council will “bend over backwards” to keep the club in the borough.

The Queens Park Rangers’ CEO has released a fresh statement asking to meet with Hammersmith and Fulham Council leader Stephen Cowan to try and find a new stadium for the club.

The 139-year-old football club says it has outgrown its 18,439 seat home of Loftus Road, andclaims the only suitable site in the borough for them to move to is the run down Linford Christie Stadium next to Wormwood Scrubs.

Hammersmith and Fulham Council told the Local Democracy Reporting Service yesterday that they were huge supporters of QPR and “are willing to bend over backwards to help them as we have done with Fulham FC and Chelsea FC.”

But the council has raised concerns about QPR struggling to finance its £20million training ground at Warren Farm in Ealing.

A spokesperson from the council added: “We’ve told QPR we cannot gift hundreds of millions of pounds worth of public land to QPR’s multi-millionaire overseas owners.

“We have suggested that if QPR are serious about any site in the borough which they need financial help with that they look into a new fan-based ownership scheme for the club.”

The Hoops have welcomed the news 10 years after they first suggested moving, but the club’s bosses are confused as work started on the new training ground last month.

A club statement from QPR CEO Leo Hoos said: “Clearly the consultants misinterpreted the response they received from the council as they reported to us that Stephen Cowan did not want to meet anyone from QPR.

“We are delighted to hear they want to ‘bend over backwards to help’ and now look forward to meeting Mr Cowan at his earliest convenience.

“This will also enable us to clear up this strange notion that we are asking for government funding, which has never been the case.”

The CEO also called for fans to invest in the club to help pay off the costs of running the stadium.

He added: “As regards to fan ownership of the club, as I have stated before, any fans who would like an equity stake in the club and want to continue funding the deficits that we incur every year due to the condition of the current stadium, please get in contact as the shareholders would be delighted to be relieved of this onerous task.

“It would seem our desire to have a community-oriented stadium is exactly what Hammersmith & Fulham Council want so I believe a meeting will be very productive.

“It seems we are all aligned with wanting a self-sustainable, community, fan-centric club, so let’s get to work.”