Threats of closure at two Wimbledon Village pubs – the Fox and Grapes and Brewery Tap – have angered drinkers.

The Fox and Grapes in Camp Road earned a place in football history when it hosted a drinking session by the players of Wimbledon FC the night before they beat Liverpool in the 1988 FA Cup final.

It was also the setting for a performance by jazz legend George Melly in the early 1980s.

Owners the Massive Pub Company went into administration in 2008 – and another group is in negotiations to buy the building.

But staff said they expected it to be converted into a restaurant, with the cellar set to be replaced with a dining area, when the deal goes through.

A pub has existed on the site of the Brewery Tap in High Street since 1832. It was built next to Wimbledon’s only brewery, a five-storey building that burned down in the 19th century.

But owner Enterprise Inns is looking to redevelop the pub as flats and shops.

Manager John Gower said it came eighth in an Evening Standard list of London’s best loved local pubs 2008, and was a profitable business that had employed hundreds of young people over the past decade.

But, he said: “We are not here to make money, we are here to be a good pub for the village.”

Mr Gower and his wife, who live above the pub, lose their home if the deal goes ahead.

Another Wimbledon pub, the Emma Hamilton, in Kingston Road, closed in August.

In June a report said twice as many British pubs were closing in 2010 as in 2009. The survey, by accountants Wilkins Kennedy, blamed increasing competition from cheap alcohol at supermarkets for the rising rate.

Enterprise Inns, owners of the Brewerty Tap, would not comment on its plans for the pubs.