A deal has been reached for a supporters group to buy Bury FC and its Gigg Lane home in a move hoped to save the club.
The administrators of the expelled club said on Friday that terms had been agreed for the purchase of the club stadium along with right, title and other assets including the Bury FC name.
A consortium led by supporters group Est. 1885 announced it has signed the agreement - and released a statement saying it hoped to achieve "much of what is needed in the short to medium term", and that it will begin working with the FA on reinserting the club into the footballing pyramid for next season.
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Administrator Steven Wiseglass, director of Inquesta Corporate Recovery and Insolvency, announced in May that the 12,000-capacity stadium was to be put up for sale.
Fleurets was appointed as the agent to actively market the stadium for sale and seek offers, with the aim of securing the "best possible outcome" for all stakeholders.
Mr Wiseglass said offers were received from a number of interested parties.
He said: “We have accepted an offer to purchase the Gigg Lane stadium and other assets, and have agreed heads of terms with the interested party.
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“We remain hopeful that the deal will be completed in a timely fashion and will be a major step towards securing the future of football at Gigg Lane.
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“My hope has always been that Bury FC could be rescued and seek readmission to the football pyramid system, and this now seems a step closer to becoming a reality.
“Until the sale is completed, we are unable to make any further comment.”
The statement released on Friday by Est. 1885 said: "We believe we can achieve much of what is needed in the short to medium term with grants, donations and volunteers, again keeping the club debt-free and enabling funds to be funneled-back into the team.
"This would also allow us to make Gigg Lane a multi-use community asset that we can all be proud of, and hopefully a platform for unification of all football in Bury.
"This agreement also allows us to begin the process of working with the FA on re-insertion of Bury F.C. into the footballing pyramid for the 2022/23 season."
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Bury FC was founded in 1885 and are two-time winners of the FA Cup in 1900 and in 1903, when they beat Derby County 6-0. This remains a record winning margin in an FA Cup final, equalled only once, when Manchester City beat Watford in the 2019 final.
The club was expelled from the Football League in 2019 following a slew of financial problems, which reached a peak when a deal with owner Steve Dale to sell the club to another party fell through.
A phoenix club was later set up by a group of supporters, although others were unwilling to give up on the original outfit.