Bristol City have all but sealed a deal which will see Sainsbury’s buy the Ashton Gate site ahead of the proposed new stadium at nearby Ashton Vale.
The club were thought to have been close to selling the plot to rival supermarket chain Tesco, but that move was met with local resistance.
Despite the Tesco bid being crucial to the Ashton Vale development, Sainsbury’s appear to have taken advantage of the situation, paving the way for the new £65m stadium down the road.
With planning permission for the new 30,000-seater stadium due on 4 November, City need to raise an estimated £20m from their current home.
If the stadium is given the green light by Bristol City Council next month, then Bristol is on target to be chosen as a host city for the 2018 World Cup if the FA wins its bid to stage the tournament.
Sainsbury’s currently have a store on Winterstoke Road but want to sell that site off for housing and build a new, bigger store to satisfy demand at Ashton Gate.
The potential new deal would mean that only two big supermarkets would be sited in the Bedminster area, instead of three if Tesco had agreed a deal with the club, and was the major discrepancy with the locals.
Both Bristol City and Sainsbury’s were unavailable for comment at this stage.
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