Ambitious plans to build a £200 million national "superdome" at Odsal are about to bite the dust after more than five years of controversy.

A major British development company is expected to sign a deal to take over the project from Superdome UK Ltd, run by developer John Garside, ahead of a crucial meeting on Friday to decide on the future of the scheme.

Chelverton Properties, developers of the Stadium of Light in Lisbon and the giant Bluewater out-of-town shopping centre in Dartford, say the superdome scheme will be "substantially downsized".

Managing Director Matthew Cattiser said the "concept and the principle" would be the same and they would be working "within the parameters" of the previous planning approval.

But, he said, they would have to look at the "complicated architecture" of the scheme with a view to cost saving and would probably have to submit a new outline planning application.

The move is expected to mean the end of the giant retractable roof and the massive 70,000-seater capacity which marked out the scheme for "superdome" status, although Mr Cattiser said it was not possible to confirm this at present.

Bradford Council's corporate executive sub-committee meets on Friday to discuss the future of the original scheme which had been given a "final" extension to its deadline to prove it was viable.

Council leader Councillor Ian Green-wood said they were now likely to go back to parties which had been interested in developing Odsal in the past and newcomers would be considered in a "limited" marketing exercise.

He said: "We are tremendously heartened to see the interest Chelverton Properties have shown.

"We are very hopeful that they will develop a top quality stadium at Odsal."

Chelverton expects to set up a new company almost immediately, which would include the Superdome name but have no connections with the original company, said Mr Cattiser.

The company - which has massive financial backing from Australia's biggest property and financial services company - is likely to face serious competition from rivals wanting to develop Odsal Stadium, including the millionaire developer of Sheffield's Meadowhall shopping centre, Eddie Healey, who has also put forward proposals for a £120 million shopping, leisure and sports stadium scheme.

If Chelverton wins the battle, its plans could pose major problems for Bradford Bulls whom Mr Cattiser said would be unable to stay in the stadium while Superdome was built and would have to relocate "for a while".

He said the new company would come in with a "clean slate" to look at every aspect of the detail of Superdome which would still include a multi-sports stadium and up to 200,000 square feet of shopping and the same for leisure.

Bulls boss Chris Caisley has already said his colours are stuck firmly to Mr. Healey's mast and he has an agreement with him to develop the stadium.

But comments on today's new developments were not available from Mr Caisley or Mr Healey.

But Mr Cattiser said if the Bulls dug their heels in there would be delays: "Sooner or later it is going to be in the Bulls' court."

Under the Superdome deal, Chelverton will take over all the preliminary work that Chief Executive John Garside and Chairman Mike Firth have done on the original ambitious proposals.

Mr Cattiser said Mr Garside and Mr Firth would not be shareholders in the new company but there would be a financial arrangement over the work already undertaken. He said they would not be shareholders in the new scheme but would "get a stake" if the project materialised.

Mr Garside said: "I am absolutely delighted . We have delivered the names of the funders to the Council as we said we would. We can't do better.

"It has been an endorsement of everything we put together. It demonstrates it is a robust and viable scheme."

He said the founders of superdome would "finish up with a tiny stake" in the Chelverton scheme if it went ahead.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.