Chester City could be no more after chairman Stephen Vaughan admitted that they had made tentative enquiries to the FA over a name change.
"If this city wants to keep its name in the club, the council had better contribute towards it." Vaughan told the Chester Evening Leader; "What has this council done for the club, and what do we need the 'city' name for? It could be Chester Football Club, Chester-Halton, Chester whatever.
"One of a number of options we're looking at is Chester-Halton."
The paper reports that an FA spokesman said: "We have received an application for a name change from Chester City FC to Chester-Halton. That is now under consideration, and the request will also need to be submitted to the Football League."
Vaughan is also chairman at Widnes Vikings Rugby League side, who play at the Halton Stadium, but denies that the move is the first part of a long-suggested move to their 12,000 seat stadium: "There are new FA rules saying you can't move out of your conurbation, so that smashes any possibility of a ground move. This is about the city council. I'm saying give us sponsorship and we will keep the city name."
Vaughan has long been critical of the level of support received from Chester City Council, and has recently rounded on fans as attendances have slumped - claiming that the last three home matches generated an average of just £9,000 each in matchday gate revenue.