• Super League club set to take advantage of relaxation in rules over location • Board remains reluctant to sanction departure away from Cheshire home

Widnes Vikings have rejected approaches from a number of investors in non-heartlands areas as they receive interest in their Super League franchise from prospective buyers hoping to make them the first top-flight club to take advantage of a relaxation in the rules surrounding relocation.

The Guardian revealed in March how the Rugby Football League had become increasingly receptive to Super League sides holding talks with potential bidders about selling up and moving elsewhere. In recent weeks the Vikings have received offers from several parties away from the sport’s traditional territories.

Vikings officials declined to comment but it is understood the club, despite sitting bottom of the Super League table, have been identified as one of the more desirable franchises to obtain. Even with offers rejected by the club’s board, potential investors remain interested in Widnes should their stance change in the coming weeks.

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The club operate with a relatively small fanbase – fewer than 4,000 home fans attended their most recent home fixture, the defeat to Hull FC – and they have limited fixed assets, given they are only tenants in their current Select Security Stadium home. That has made them increasingly desirable in the eyes of some investors as a potential purchase.

The approaches were understood to have been rejected because the club’s board remains committed to the town, which has had a rugby league presence ever since the sport’s formation in 1895. Vikings officials have also been heartened that, despite looking likely to face a battle in the Qualifiers this season to preserve their Super League status, a number of the club’s academy products have graduated to the first team in 2017.

Fifteen of the first-team squad are homegrown, with the Vikings’ junior production line regarded as one of the best. In the sport’s annual accreditation scheme, Widnes were graded outstanding by the RFL in 2016, with similar recognition expected this year.

However, the club have faced significant commercial pressures off the field. Last year, Widnes finished in their highest ever Super League position of seventh, but the club’s chief executive, James Rule, revealed at the start of this year that while they attracted new members they also lost around £150,000 worth of membership due to 2016 season ticket holders not renewing their commitment.

Rule also recently appealed directly to stay-away supporters ahead of the club’s home game with Leeds on Bank Holiday Monday. He said: “At a time when we have faced an unprecedented number of injuries to our first team and struggled to find form, it can be tempting to stay away. I understand that, but in reality any reductions in our income restricts our ability to recruit both this year and next.”

• This article was amended on 29 May to correct the location of Widnes’ stadium, which is in Halton, Cheshire