On 12 August, Dale said he would consider selling the club after staff 'implored' him to accept a newly received offer to buy the club, but, on 20 August, he rejected a deal that would have secured the survival of the club, believing he could get a better offer. Bury North MP James Frith wrote to EFL chair Debbie Jevans asking for the expulsion deadline to be extended; Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, also requested an extension. On 22 August, the EFL gave an extra 48 hours to avoid expulsion after it emerged that four parties were interested in a takeover. Late on 23 August, Dale was said to have agreed a sale to analytics company C&N Sporting Risk. The following morning, an EFL board meeting gave Bury until 17:00 BST on Tuesday 27 August to complete the sale, though Jevans later said a further short extension might be granted if the sale was very close to conclusion. Shortly before the deadline, however, C&N Sporting Risk pulled out of the deal saying it was "unable to proceed".
