Maybe the signs that cash is being generated from other sources will compensate for our lack of shirt-sponsorship?

At first I got all excited when I misread the headline in tonight's Yorkshire Evening Post, I thought it said we'd bought back Elland Road but I'd missed the "catering rights" bit. Back in 2012, cuddly Ken Bates sold off the rights almost in their entirety for food and beverage to the Compass Group for an upfront payment. According to Massimo Cellino outsourcing this business has been one of the reasons why the club have lost money over the last 10 years and Leeds are regaining control of what's naturally ours.

I'm not such an expert on commercial catering I could preach the pro's and con's of providing the match day (and non match day) fayre or sourcing it out. However given the banqueting suite seems to do well and the posh bit in the East Stand upper always seems to be packed out with well-heeled folk tucking in; not to mention the amount of pies and pints quaffed in the cheap seats perhaps Leeds have missed a trick down the years by bringing the caterers in?

Cellino, who famously cooked a pre-match meal for the players before last season's win over Ipswich may know a thing or two about catering as his first taste of life in England was working in the kitchen of a London hotel many years ago. Whether or not the quality of the food improves or it gets any cheaper even remains to be seen. As for the stadium buy-back which I mistakenly thought was on the cards, that seems light-years away and Cellino made a rod for his own back by famously promising to do this prior to the ratification of his takeover. The Italian got cold feet when he realised that such a deal would benefit GFH Capital who still hold a quarter share in the club.

However Cellino reaffirmed his commitment to "buy back our house" by saying "The Elland Road Stadium is another important asset that is high on the list of priorities for me to bring back into club ownership." Presently Leeds rent both Elland Road and the Thorp Arch training facility which is believed to cost around £2m per annum.

The news about the catering comes as Leeds announced a "record breaking" sponsorship deal for the South Stand. Global Autocare will take over from UAP as the South Stand sponsor for the next three-years. They will also become the clubs "vehicle partner" whatever that means.

This positive sponsorship news may allay the fears of some who have pointed out that our new Kappa kit does not carry any sponsorship whatsoever. Personally I think this is bloody fantastic however I refuse to believe that it's down to vanity and nobility, a bit like Barcelona (pictured during our Champions League clash with them in 2000) did down the years and refused to contaminate their shirt space to the highest bidder eventually relenting to a good cause in the form of the UNICEF charity.

The real explanation is that we are embroiled in a dispute with Macron and Enterprise Insurance, who both had deals agreed with the previous regimes to stay on board until the end of next season. The Sabotage Times hail it as "the best kit in English football" by virtue of it having no sponsors however Nottingham Forest fans will point out that their "Garibaldi" shirts will also not carry any sponsorship in commemoration of their 150th anniversary. That must come as some relief not having the ridiculous FAWAZ emblem emblazoned on their chest.

However the plain-look is clearly a success with the official LUFC twitter feed claiming 3500 new shirts were shifted over the weekend. To cement the feeling of goodwill between supplier and client, Lewis Cook and Alex Mowatt have recreated the famous Kappa ("back to back") logo which proudly sits atop the club shop. Let's hope for one season at least we can enjoy the feeling of pure and simple whiteness for the first time since 1981. Now how about a nice yellow version for the away kit?

Photo: Action Images

Leeds United Polls