Speedway: Sheffield confirmed for 2026 season, and when signing announcements are expected
Sheffield have confirmed they will ride in the Speedway Premiership in 2026, after their future ownership was confirmed tonight.
The club has announced that the Bates family will continue to run the club after new investors were found for next season, with last season’s co=promotor Peter Mole retaining a stake in the club, but dropping out of his promoters role.
Meanwhile, the club has confirmed that it has already held informal initial talks with riders ahead of the 2026 season.
The club’s STAARS fans meeting at the New Barrack Tavern on Thursday night was told there were verbal agreements made with some riders even with all the uncertainty at the end of last season.
They have also confirmed that they will announce rider signings as they are agreed, rather than having a grand reveal of the whole team, as was the case last season.
The points limit will be 37 for riders one to six, plus a rising star. There are four teams now confirmed for the tournament, with six teams expected to be competing in total.
Although there had been enquiries about the club, the Bates family have decided to remain as owners with new investors set to come on board early in the new year.
Promoter Damien Bates said in a statement this evening: “It’s not been an easy few months for anyone and we do sympathise with the supporters and how worried they must’ve been.
“But honestly, things have been so up and down, literally changing on a week-by-week basis, and we didn’t want to say anything until we knew which way things were going.
“From the moment we announced we were putting the club up for sale, we had a lot of interest - but no actual firm offers as such.
“Some people seemed more genuinely interested than others, but at the same time, we wouldn’t just hand Sheffield over to anybody.
“At the end of the day, we love Sheffield and throughout this whole process, we’ve kept the best interests of the club at heart.
“There was one ‘phone call which stood out more than all the others though - that is the one we’ve followed up and it’s one that has convinced us we’re bringing the right people into the club.
“We can’t say too much more at this moment in time because we still need to dot the i’s and cross the t’s, but it’s a set-up that we feel very comfortable with and one that has helped renew our enthusiasm after a difficult end to the 2025 season.
“Me and my family will be staying on as owners and Peter Mole has also decided to retain part-ownership - but he will still step down as co-promoter as planned.
“The new investors have committed to looking after the commercial and marketing side of the club and with them and one or two other people stepping up their involvement behind the scenes, we feel we’re back in a really strong position as a club going into 2026.
“We’re looking at this as a fresh start and a new chapter in so many ways and there’ll be lots to announce in the new year once we’ve had chance to finalise everything.
“In the meantime, we’ve resumed conversations with riders and we’ll unveil those in due course also.”