Stoke owners in bid for Port Vale

After 127 years' history, and with no sign of Robbie Williams riding to the rescue on a black-and-white charger, Port Vale's continued existence may rest with the six club chairmen and one MP that comprise the Football League's board, after the company that owns Stoke City made the highest offer for the cash-strapped Second Division club.

The Stoke chairman, Gunnar Gislason, insisted his club had no intention of taking over Vale but added, perhaps significantly, that he could not speak for Stoke Holding, the company set up by the Icelandic consortium that bought control of Stoke in 1999. He believed a future merger made "financial sense".

Vale supporters' groups and rival bidders fear that Stoke Holding wants to buy Vale with the intention of selling Vale Park for housing and using the money to shore up Stoke's future. Vale are in administration with debts of £2.4m.

Under the Icelandic proposals, the Burslem club would either be merged with Stoke – whose debts are around three times the size of Vale's – or share their First Division neighbours' ground. Vale's support, currently averaging 4,300, is concentrated in the north end of Stoke-on-Trent (the smallest English city to boast two League teams). Stoke's Britannia Stadium is in the south, leading many Vale supporters to argue that a takeover would mean the death of their club.

Stoke Holding must convince the League directors that its bid does not breach the rule barring one club from being involved, directly or indirectly, in running another. The committee that will consider Stoke Holding's offer is led by the new League chairman, the former Tory minister Sir Brian Mawhinney. He is joined by David Sheepshanks (Ipswich chairman), Theo Paphitis (Millwall), Barry Hearn (Leyton Orient), Terry Robinson (Sheffield United), Ivor Beeks (Wycombe) and Peter Heard (Colchester).

The three other offers come from organisations or individuals pledging to keep Vale at their home of 53 years. Bill Bratt, for the fan-based Valiant 2001 consortium, said: "You only have to look at Stoke's monetary problems and how they treated the manager [Gudjon Thordarson] who got them promoted. This must be stopped."

John Simmonds, of the Sproson Trust supporters' group, said: "It's a calculated plan to create one club in the city and put Port Vale out of business."

Jeff Kent, of the Save the Vale fund, said: "It's hard to believe anyone could come up with such a crass idea."