The Bulls today said they would welcome City on board as ground-sharers at the new Odsal Sporting Village.

Bradford’s two major clubs could sensationally come together under the same roof if the multi-million pound stadium plans finally get the green light.

City yesterday revealed they may look into moving from their Valley Parade home, where they are currently paying £1million a year in overheads.

And Bulls chairman Peter Hood admitted the Super League club are keen on seeing their footballing neighbours join forces.

“The Odsal Sporting Village is a fantastic scheme as it is now but it would be even more fantastic if Bradford City wanted to come to the party,” he said.

“I’ve said before, the OSV is not about Bradford Bulls; it’s about a number of sporting facilities including cricket, hockey, athletics, cycling and basketball.

“It’s about providing leisure activities like dance and rock-climbing, while at the same time will be built a stadium fit-for-purpose in the 21st century. If City want to come on board too, that would be great.”

The scheme’s stakeholders such as Yorkshire Forward, Bradford College, the PCT and Bradford Bulls are currently working with outside consultants to detail the best mix of facilities for the proposed venue.

Bradford City Council are expected to announce next month whether the project will go ahead and it is hoped the stadium could be up and running by 2011.

The Bantams have been in their Valley Parade home for more than a century and any move could cause upset among their faithful, especially since the tragic events of the 1985 fire.

But City’s head of operations David Baldwin said: “Being someone who was present that day, I feel the biggest respect we can show to the victims is to ensure the long-term sustainability of this club.

“The bottom line is that we’re in a position where we have to evaluate all our options. This (Valley Parade) is a very expensive place to be.”

Baldwin insists the club is not performing a sabre-rattling exercise to scare previous chairman Gordon Gibb into reducing their rent.

They are not even a quarter of the way through a 25-year lease agreement with stadium owner Gibb’s family pension fund, who bought it for £2.5million in 2004.

But Baldwin said: “There are ways and means (to getting out of the lease), so maybe he should come to the table.

“One of the biggest plus points to Odsal is that it resolves our training facility dilemma as well.

“One of the long-term plans to the scheme is to build training facilities around the stadium, so we really do have to give it serious consideration.”

City currently train on council-run pitches at Apperley Bridge, a venue five miles from Bradford and one which regularly gets flooded. They have suffered even more this season because of the wintry conditions.

Many ambitious Odsal revamping schemes have failed to materialise over the last 50 years and there are still plenty of sceptics about the current one.

However, Baldwin warned: “Everybody said it’s pie in the sky but the reality is it’s potentially coming to fruition very quickly.

“It’s as real as it’s ever going to be and if we haven’t weighed up our options, we could miss the boat.

“Valley Parade is still the spiritual home of Bradford City, and our preferred scenario is not to leave, but cost-cutting measures need to be put in place. The financial situation here has come to a head.”

Plenty of Bulls fans were miffed when their club had to relocate to Valley Parade for a season in 2001 due to building work at Odsal.

The prospect of City supporters going the opposite way permanently is sure to divide opinion, especially as their present home is a far superior stadium to Odsal in its current state.

But Hood urged any doubters: “Don’t assume Odsal in the future is going to be the same bowl in the ground it’s been since 1955.

“It’d be dangerous to make those assumptions. We’re starting again with a clean sheet of paper.

“Wigan, Hull and Huddersfield have all done the same with their rugby league and football sides, moved to purpose-built stadiums, and fans have been pleased with the outcome.

“Crowds at Hull FC and Warrington in particular increased significantly.”

City joint-chairman Mark Lawn backed up Baldwin’s comments by saying: “We aren’t saying no. Everybody thinks it’s totally out of the question. It’s not.”