Do you actually think 15k are priced out of the stadium currently? If so, how cheap would you have to make the tickets so they could afford them week in, week out? If we have 15k fans who can't currently afford tickets, why would you expect them to be spending much in the stadium or in the surrounding sheepfolds area where new bars will probably be charging £4.50 a pint? We simply don't have a match going fanbase that big in my opinion. Even if we attracted that, it would be only if we're successful. Mid table premier league (which is about as good as we could realistically hope for) and we'd be looking at 45k. Another 3 seasons in the Championship and it won't get higher than where it is currently.
Would it not cost millions? Could we not use those millions to get Stewart to sign a bloody extension?
While my memory my be at fault, I seem to recall that at the start of some previous Seasons, the poor state of The Pitch was blamed on The Music Events. So what's the priority here? The last International I recall was against Australia. It was said to have cost The Club Money. The FA took all the profits, and then some. So no incentive on that front. The additional gate money that a larger capacity would bring, won't come in wrong. BUT, the bigger crowds to fill those extra seats will only come when we are a prem side. And given the amount that comes from TV in The Prem, gate money is only a small percentage of Turnover. There will be costs in increasing the capacity. Where does the funding come from and will this impact on Team Strengthening? In terms of a business case for increasing the capacity, so far, I have not read a convincing case. Were SAFC to get established as a Premier League Side, that case would be much easier to make.
To really increase the crowds, we’d need to continue on the current trajectory of improving the quality of the football. We have played some excellent stuff this year and showed plenty of grit, which also goes down well. If the recruitment and team management / style of play keep improving at the current rate then we could have hell of a team to watch in 2 or 3 years. It wouldn’t have cost a fortune, either.
It’s not just that people are priced out of going. If match day prices dropped by say £5 rather than increasing by £3, then there’s more chance people who are in two minds about going, may be tempted to go along. Game prices for season tickets isn’t too bad, but for people who pay on the day, it’s a decent wedge, and that’s who the club should be hoping to pull in. Get them attending regularly and you may have some deciding to get season tickets eventually. For everywhere selling pints for £4.50, they’ll be other places in the town selling cheaper.
The German model is the one I would like to see us follow. We used to get 65,000 plus on occasions and 40,000 regularly and that was in the old second division. 100,000 turned up for one cup re-play, just look back to the fabulous scenes in 1973 to get some idea of this place in full swing, It can happen again no doubt about it.
This is a thing that would benefit the club and the area. It isn't a case of 'we need to be in the upper premiership regularly to make this worthwhile' - KLD will look at improving the team along with the facilities. Financial Fair Play will ultimately limit what the club can do unless it can increase its revenues. We expand capacity and also maximise non-match revenues or we accept unending ticket price hikes. Yes, concerts were blamed for poor pitch condition - but KLD will know all about that and will be looking deeply into options to avoid any repeat in the future - I wouldn't be surprised to see a movable pitch or platform floor with integral grow-light options being considered. Possibly even a stadium roof - as much to minimise noise pollution limit problems as for reducing event postponements. He's a bright kid (no pun intended) and has seen what lack of vision did for us. He will have access to financiers that previous owners could only dream about being able to approach. SAFC is more than just the football, it is about attracting the high value players and artists. For that we need to be a prestigious venue known worldwide, but I can't see KLD suffering the same squad-hindering financial limitations as Sir Bob. This time last year we were stressing about L1 playoff places, this year we are a secure mid-table championship side and us fans are debating the wisdom of stadium expansion. So whatever KLD eventually decides will be fine with me.
If we get it for cheap because of a £20m grant for the Euros, then they'd be remiss to not at least consider it. Better to do it now and get funding for it, than years down the line when it might impact spending on the football side of things. Not sure about the finance side of things- presumably it would be investment which wiuodnt affect FFP, and it might also help KLD get rid of any current shareholders who can't afford to invest any more.
Don’t doubt you’re passing on info that you’ve heard but I can’t see why (bar the euros) we would extend the stadium to 60,000 when we struggle to hit 40k.
Other fans would also be entitled to a bigger allocation which would embarrass some clubs ... ... time for us to mock them. I'd like to see more internationals, of any kind, which would bring in money to the town. I've no idea what is happening with the Audi garage but I'd love to see it bought by the club. I could see it as a gym/restaurant/theatre/conference/village hall/whatever ... ... all involving locals and visitors but branded SAFC.
Spot on mate. This isn't just developing the team, it's growing the club as a whole. Bob Murray tried it, but wasn't wealthy enough himself to do it fully and misjudged improving the team instead. I just did a quick check, when the north stand upper open, those first two seasons we averaged over 46,700 in both seasons after the two 7th place finishes. In the 14/15 and 15/16 seasons, both seasons where we were involved in relegation battles until the last couple of games, we averaged on 43,000. It shows that the potential for big gates is there. I think we still carry the scars of the 19 and 15 point seasons, along with the way we plummeted through the leagues when Short pulled the plug and ending up in league 1 for four seasons. But I still firmly believe that if we're run properly (and don't shoot ourselves in the foot like we have done in the past) that there's no reason that we couldn't pull in 50k+ crowds regularly. You can also look at this as where KLDs ambition is for us. I doubt he'd consider it if he was only wanting us to make the numbers up. I will say, however, that even if KLD is looking into it now, it doesn't mean it's going to happen straight away. More likely to be in a couple of years time. But it makes sense to look at it now, with all the other developments going on in the city right now, especially as the SOL will be 30 years old in a couple of years. It maybe coming up to the point that it could do with some redevelopment itself, especially after being starved of it in recent years.
I'd be all for it. Doesn't have to be open all the time. We've used the lower bowl only when we've needed to. Personally I think the place would look class as a 60k seater, and if its a grant that ables it to happen, then go for it. Get the place ready.
Audi garage is going to be an online gaming hub hosting tournaments and stuff. I believe. Big business by all accounts apparently
Winners of the tournaments can win thousands just by playing fifa against others on the opposite side of the planet. Don't think there is anything like it in the NE at the moment.
Struggle to hit 40? We are getting amazing crowds compared to the lack of investment and success. With both, we could go way beyond amazing.
I couldn’t agree more. When it comes to crowd size Sunderland fans themselves under estimate this club all the time. The potential of this club is enormous. For example, when my dad and me would attend family gatherings when were were getting 30-40k, we were the only people attending regularly out of the 20-30 people in the room. Given a successful team, competing in Europe etc, ALL of them would attend. Maybe not every week, but there wasn’t anybody who said they weren’t bothered or wouldn’t go. If an alternating average of even 2 of them each week out of that 30 started going, that would make twice as many as just my dad and me, and if repeated through Sunderland and the region as it would be, it could double our 30-40k gate, and make even a 60k stadium look a little small. The issue is that so many of can’t even imagine what a successful team would look like - I know that I have never experienced one on my lifetime - that it’s hard for us to properly imagine what it could be like.
