Wakefield Council has agreed to provide £500,000 to secure the future of professional rugby league in Featherstone.
The financial boost comes after Featherstone Rovers went into administration in December and the club was denied membership of the Rugby Football League (RFL).
The council's cabinet members voted in favour of a recommendation to release funds to support the RFL's plan to purchase the town's Post Office Road ground and lease it to a new operator.
Lukasz Borcz, the council's portfolio holder for leisure and sport, told a meeting on Tuesday: "This model protects the assets for future generations and reduces the risk of further loss."
It is hoped a successor club could be created and return to competition from 2027.
Funding comes from the council's Rugby League Resilience Fund, which was established in 2021 to develop grassroots and professional rugby league across the district.
The council expects the RFL to match the contribution, and discussions are also ongoing regarding further financial support from national funding bodies, the Local Democracy Service reports.
Borcz added: "The benefits of taking this forward will include safeguarding a major community and sporting asset, protecting opportunities for participation and youth development."
A report to cabinet members said talks had been ongoing about how a "phoenix club" could be established at the stadium.
The document said: "Key to this is what happens to the future of the Featherstone Rovers assets, which are currently in the control of an appointed administrator.
"It is proposed that the RFL acquire the stadium and associated land through the RFL Facilities Trust."
They would then be leased back to the new licence holders of the club, the report said, adding: "The benefit of the asset being held by the RFL Facilities Trust is that it ensures that, should the club get into difficulty in the future, the assets are secured for future generations to ensure professional rugby league can continue in Featherstone."
The council said funding would only be released once the RFL had demonstrated that a sustainable operating entity had been identified and had met "all relevant requirements".
The RFL previously said it was grateful to the council for enabling the release of resilience funding and said it remained hopeful it could "find a solution to bring Featherstone Rovers RLFC back to the town".
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