Leeds Met pulls out of rugby club ownership
LEEDS Metropolitan University has given up its majority ownership of professional rugby club Leeds Carnegie after spending almost £2m on the partnership in the last two years.
The move was revealed on the day the university announced it is is to cut jobs and freeze top managers’ pay to help deal with losses expected to reach £7m next year.
The university has returned its 51% stake in the Leeds Carnegie club to Leeds Rugby which is headed by property developer Paul Caddick and chief executive Gary Hetherington.
Under the 10-year deal, announced in 2007, Leeds Met took the controlling stake and saw the club change its name from Leeds Tykes to Leeds Carnegie after the university’s sports faculty.
It is believed that the university ploughed £1.1m into the club in the first year of the deal and another £800,000 in the second year.
The pioneering move was spearheaded by former vice-chancellor Simon Lee who resigned earlier this year after facing an inquiry into complaints about his treatment of staff.
Prof Lee denied the claims.
The university is forecasting a loss of up to £7m in the next academic year and is considering raising its tuition fees which have been some of the lowest in the country.
