Another Championship club has announced major financial issues after the current owners appear to have pulled out.
The Championship had to start the season without Featherstone Rovers; Halifax Panthers managed to start late while there were grave doubts before a revamped Salford took their place in the competition.
Several other clubs are believed to be struggling financially and Whitehaven have already expressed concerns after a very low gate early in the season.
Whitehaven travelled to Colwyn Bay to play the North Wales Crusaders two weeks ago and lost 52-20, with the return at the Ortus Rec scheduled for June 14.
Workington Town finished runners-up to Crusaders in the last season of League One in 2025 but don’t play them this season, and neither do Barrow.
Former Whitehaven player-coach Carl Forster led the Crusaders to the League One title but has since joined the coaching staff at Bradford Bulls while his successor recently left the club.
Addressing supporters, Crusaders have announced they are looking for a new majority shareholder to take the club on.
A statement read: “Due to a change in circumstances, the owners of the North Wales Crusaders have concluded that they will no longer fund the additional costs to run the club with immediate effect.
“Initially involved at the back end of 2024, the owners cleared a lot of historical issues and debts, and invested in a squad to win League One. The current situation with regard to costs and competitive league set-up isn’t tenable for the owners and an adjustment to the business plan is needed.
“The shareholders have been working in the background to identify suitable partners who may provide a combination of values that would be ideal to give North Wales Crusaders an opportunity to thrive, making the most of the location, talent and facilities.
“As yet we do not have an agreement in place, so we want to make public that we are looking for a new majority shareholder, someone with the passion for the project in North Wales that we have.
“We recognise that this will create uncertainty, and would ask at this point for all North Wales investors to get behind the club, staff and players. A great opportunity to show your support would be at forthcoming home fixtures in the 1895 Cup versus Midlands Hurricanes and in the league versus Salford.”
There has been an issue with Crusaders players being paid late and there is even a suggestion that they will go on strike over the matter.
