It was the press conference that had become the talk of the town. After days of fervent speculation, Hull City supporters found reason to stop whatever they were doing at 2pm yesterday to go in search of clarity on the uncertain fate of their club.
The time finally arrived when Assem Allam promptly took his seat at the front of the KC Stadium's media suite, thanked the assembled press and read out a prepared 203-word statement.
There were two pertinent, if not altogether surprising, points presented. The club was actively searching for a buyer, confirmed Allam, and an appeal process was now underway to overturn the Football Association's decision to reject a re-branding as Hull Tigers.
Assurances followed that the 75-year-old owner would remain fully committed to the club until either appeal or sale was concluded but beyond that the doubts remained as shadows in the room.
Even as he patiently worked through 49 minutes of questions, much of it played out live on BBC Radio Humberside, the long-term future of City did not become much clearer.
The club's owner confirmed there had been interest shown in the club over the summer but fell short of furnishing further details. He also added he would "make sure the club is moving to a good home, better than mine." That might not even mean an outright sale, with Dr Allam refusing to rule out shared ownership.
All those questions could become hypothetical if, through a process of arbitration, Dr Allam were to achieve his long-held desire to rename the club Hull Tigers, but he only went as far as saying he was "reasonably confident" of success on that front.
Should he fail in both appeal and sale this Autumn, Dr Allam insisted he was "finished" with a club where he has invested at least £72m since taking over from Russell Bartlett in December 2010.
"I will give it away," he said. "Out means I'm out. You know me. Have I ever said something and gone back on it?
"I can't see me living without principles. Life's not worth having."
It was an extraordinary hour in City's history even if Dr Allam predominantly revived long-held views.
As well as stoking the fire that burns between himself and Hull City Council, mocking some of the councillors for not venturing beyond Doncaster, he spoke of his unwavering belief that the majority of the club's supporters remain behind his leadership.
"I've gone for arbitration for one reason, I don't want the silent majority to criticise me for not going all the way," he explained in his opening answer.
"We have applied for shortening the name (to Hull Tigers). If I ignore the arbitration and say it is to be sold I will have let the silent majority down.
"But there will be no further application (to the FA), that was once and it is done.
"I am going forward with arbitration because it is a continuation of the process. I want to do my best for the club and the fans, even though the silent majority kept silent, until the end."
But Dr Allam has not been afraid of considering a failed appeal. It was with sadness he contemplated handing the club over.
Asked if he would prefer to stay on as owner, he said: "Yes of course. There's a lot in my mind to be achieved, that's not achieved yet.
"I bought the club to save it at a cost of 20-odd million pounds simply to apply to the court to withdraw the winding up order.
"To do that I had to pay the tax man, the VAT man, Barclays bank, Investec bank. That was a massive risk for me. I had to pay this before I owned the club.
"I am a man of principles. Money doesn't come into it. My decision is my decision, I don't say what I don't mean.
"If I end up selling I would be selling with tears in my eyes because I would not have finished what I wanted to do. But there is no compromise."
Lest we forget, this remains all about the failed name change in April. Adamant that Hull City would become more commercially attractive around the globe if named Hull Tigers, he believes his attempts to grow are meeting obstacles. He still feels let down by the FA.
"The honest answer is yes. I don't want to comment a lot. We are members of the FA and we work under the umbrella so I'm not interested in being critical of the parent organisation because I get nothing out of this.
"If it is a good reason it is to protect English football from misuse. Someone could come and say they would change the name to Red Bull Football Club or Coca Cola Football Club and so on.
"Or a rude name, Red Bottom Football Club, and they would have a right to protect football from that. But this is none of this. It is shortening the name. You want to shorten the name to go global.
"At the moment, because we have no other income, I pay, as evidence of my commitment to the local community, but there is a limit and I have gone past it."
He will not pull the plug abruptly, however, adding: "I am fully committed to the last minute. Doesn't matter how much it costs, I am fully committed. Whatever the club needs, I am fully committed."
That will go some way to soothing any concerns arising in manager Steve Bruce's mind ahead of Monday's clash with West Ham but the reality remains that no one really knows who will own City come 2015.
"Nobody needs instability," he said. "It goes without saying.
"There is a principle in management. Authority equals responsibility, no two ways about it. The person who has the authority carries the responsibility.
"The minute you tell me to go, I go. But if I stay and carry responsibility, I must have full responsibility.
"I don't mind if someone shares the authority with me but you must share the responsibility."
Quite who will take that burden beyond the turn of the year remains unclear and for that reason supporters are still left wondering what really comes next.
• The Mail was contacted by Hull City late last night (Thursday) to explain references made by Dr Allam in his press conference to an appeal being made to the Court of Arbitration in sport were actually incorrect. The club says it will go through a process of arbitration with the FA.