Leaving the Mem 'most likely' option for Rovers

Bristol Rovers chairman Hussain AlSaeed has said moving away from the Memorial Stadium is the "most likely" option the club are considering.

Rovers' owners have been exploring redeveloping their home stadium and increasing its capacity, however AlSaeed said in January plans had stalled due to a number of studies returning a "red flag".

There are a number of location "targets" in and around Bristol the League Two club are examining, AlSaeed said, that are unrelated to any previously explored.

However AlSaeed added plans to move were not "concrete" with the ground having been Rovers' home since 1996.

"It [moving] would be most likely that the option that we are considering at the moment because of all the red flags that we had in the Memorial - the location, all that - it makes it extremely difficult to redevelop," AlSaeed told BBC Radio Bristol.

"We're looking and there are more targets and we are cooperating with the local investors, local developers to guide us through that. There is a few options available and we're evaluating those options.

"Our fans have been misled in the past regarding the new stadium and regarding where they're going to live so I'm not going to say that until I have concrete plans."

Multiple attempts to relocate Bristol Rovers have fallen by the wayside over the years.

The club was involved in a High Court battle with Sainsburys over a deal to buy the Mem in 2011, while a proposed move to a ground at Bristol's Fruit Market site was still "on the table" when Kuwaiti businessman AlSaeed took over as majority owner of Bristol Rovers in 2023, before acquiring the full shares in November 2024.

More than £400,000 has been spent investigating redevelopment options at the Memorial Stadium in recent years, in fees for studies, surveys and architecture design.

The ground is in the busy residential area of Horfield and adjacent to Gloucester Road, a 1.7 mile (2.7km) thoroughfare of shops, restaurants and bars, meaning space in that area of Bristol is of a premium.

AlSaeed said he had no regrets on the spending as the club wanted to ensure they have made sure the option of the staying at the Mem is "exhausted" if and when they decide to move on.

Bristol Rovers' 2025-26 finished on a high with a nine-game unbeaten run, including eight consecutive wins under manager Steve Evans.

Yet it did not start that way. Darrell Clarke was sacked as head coach in December with the club on a 10-game losing streak, in the bottom two and facing the real possibility of successive relegations that would see them drop out of the football league.

The atmosphere from fans towards the club hierarchy at the time was hostile but AlSaeed said he had "absolutely not" considered selling the club.

"We're not going to run away from the problems, we're going to turn that problem to a challenge and from challenge to opportunity and we're going forward," he said.

"That's what I said and that's what we did and hopefully that's what we continue to do."

The club's most recent set of accounts until June 2025 showed Bristol Rovers made a loss of £7m.

AlSaeed and Dwane Sports - the holding company for the club - have also loaned about £17m to the club across the past three years.

AlSaeed said investing that level of money was "needed" when he took over but they are looking at other ways the club can generate money in the long run.

"I can be putting money [in] this year and next year but it cannot be going on forever," he said.

"You need to really create an asset for the club, something that it can really sustain its advance for this city, for these fans, for everyone."

As for whether he is looking to get the loaned money back at some point, AlSaeed said he had not "thought about that".

"When you come to a football club you don't really think about profit. What drives you is passion, what drives you is challenge, what drives you is that how can what can you do for this club?" he said.

"We will continue to support that club, we will continue to be behind it, until we have a really full-fledged club that can advance because I think our fans deserve much better."