Bournemouth can’t afford repay its loan

The League One club has informed the borough council they cannot afford to repay a £250,000 loan made five years ago. The loan, which was awarded to help with the building of a new stadium, is due to be repaid but it is unlikely that the club, which has debts of around £4.3m, will be in a position to repay the money. Instead, it is expected that the council will come to an agreement with the club where the authority receives other benefits instead of cash repayments. The club is currently struggling to restructure its most pressing debts and has several loans secured against the Fitness First stadium, including money from Bristol and West Investments PLC, Lloyds Bank, Northover and Gilbert and Fitness First.