League OneCoventry City's plan to groundshare with Northampton Town for the next three years has been approved by the Football League board, reports BBC Sport. "The board did not take this decision lightly," said League chairman Greg Clarke.

"It remains a matter of deep regret that the two parties involved cannot come to an agreement."

A statement released by the League on Monday afternoon stated that their board of directors had "reluctantly approved an application by Otium Entertainment Group - the administrator's preferred bidder for Coventry City FC Limited - for Coventry City to play its home matches at Northampton Town's Sixfields Stadium for an initial period of three seasons."

"Of course Coventry should be playing in Coventry, but the reason why they cannot for this temporary period is not down to us," said Northampton chairman David Cardoza.

"There wasn't any plan for us to try and tempt another club away from their local community for our financial gain. We are simply helping a fellow football club, at their request.

"Had we not reached agreement, and had Coventry been forced to look somewhere else, it may have been at a stadium even further away than Sixfields and with a club who were less aware of the sensitivity and emotion felt by Coventry fans.

"All we can do is make the period when they are playing their home games at Sixfields as bearable as possible for Coventry and their supporters."