Expand the stadium? The poll

[Vlad the Fox]

Fond these in the Leicester City Planning Department

Seemingly the only plans submitted relate December 2014 and just to clear up the land which I believe was before it was up for sale.

Although my son tells me his mate is working on the site to prepare it for a fans village and that they hope to start expanding the stadium June 2017.

There doesn't appear to be any plans submitted for either of these but it fits in with other people's 'rumours'

Then again my lads renowned for winding me up.

There's a planning notice for a fans village attached to a lamppost next to the site. I was reading it tonight.

[Great Boos Up]

As this poll is already nearly a year old, the 2 years plus survival voters are realistically right.

So rather than bolt on a few seats in a stand now that we have made history, perhaps it would be better to let something more spectacular happen. A finished aesthetic alteration of a 40K stadium of something more bespoke and beautiful. 

[GloverFox]

Not only do we go for the stadium expansion but we must ... No ... MUST have a Ranieri statue outside the stadium ... it's that massive an achievement

[Vlad the Fox]

The Claudio Ranieri Stand. Let's start integrating our great history into the fabric of the club.

[cityfanlee23]

I have a funny feeling I read somewhere the maximum capacity the stadium could go to is around the 50k mark but cannot for the life of me remember where I saw it.

[purpleronnie]

I'd imagine increasing the corporate seating would be the reason for possible expansion, thesedays in the Premiership ticket sales aren't that important for revenue.  If it isn't cost efficient theres no point in expansion.

[cityfanlee23]

I'd imagine increasing the corporate seating would be the reason for possible expansion, thesedays in the Premiership ticket sales aren't that important for revenue.  If it isn't cost efficient theres no point in expansion.

 

Well it would generate a fair few million a year... Even at £15 a ticket, 10k more seats would be around 3m on revenue alone, plus revenue from food/drink etc, all adds up and 

benefits the club in the long run, In the premier league we would sell out 40k

[purpleronnie]

Well it would generate a fair few million a year... Even at £15 a ticket, 10k more seats would be around 3m on revenue alone, plus revenue from food/drink etc, all adds up and 

benefits the club in the long run, In the premier league we would sell out 40k

Millions invested for a relatively small return, especially if all extra seats aren't sold,.  I'd imagine the owners would rather invest in the team than adding a few thousand more seats.  It's a tricky one.

[yorkie1999]

What the hell is a fan's village?

Food, beer, live bands, big screens, meeting place.

[yorkie1999]

Millions invested for a relatively small return, especially if all extra seats aren't sold,. I'd imagine the owners would rather invest in the team than adding a few thousand more seats. It's a tricky one.

Team is regulated by ffp which means the more seats you can potentially sell, the more money you can spend on the team and players. The Stadium , training ground etc arn't regulated by ffp. Thats why west ham wanted a massive ground and why man city expanded when they couldnt fill their ground in the first place.

[iLikeFoxes]

Team is regulated by ffp which means the more seats you can potentially sell, the more money you can spend on the team and players. The Stadium , training ground etc arn't regulated by ffp. Thats why west ham wanted a massive ground and why man city expanded when they couldnt fill their ground in the first place.

I'm ignorant of ffp as I'm relatively new to following EPL. But it sounds like just one more hurdle to overcome in the gap between small and large clubs. Doesn't this effectively insulate the large clubs from financial competition?

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[Vlad the Fox]

I'm ignorant of ffp as I'm relatively new to following EPL. But it sounds like just one more hurdle to overcome in the gap between small and large clubs. Doesn't this effectively insulate the large clubs from financial competition?

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 Basically yes though stadium expansion is exempt from the rules. I think the best summery i saw for ffp was a reporter referring to chelsea voting in favour of it as them 'climbing in to the loft and pulling the ladder up'.

[CallySinnamon]

Fantastic mock up btw! That looks quality.

 

I was unsure about revealing my source before as the company I work for want to try and kit out the ground with new screens so I didn't want to potentially compromise anything.

 

We had Simon Capper (Finance Director) sitting on our table at the PFA awards and he told me about the stadium expansion.

 

Fantastic news if true. Not doubting you, by the way - just don't know how reliable your source is.

 

 

You made me wonder what it might look like, and curiosity got the better of me.

 

I had a little go on Photoshop to see what I reckon is most likely to happen...

 

 

 

I'm guessing that something like this is what we can expect. I estimated that one of the longer stands, without including the corners, holds roughly 8k, so doubling the height of the East (or West) stand (without including corners) would take the capacity up to around 40k. I expect that the corners either side of the East stand wouldn't be included, because the rooves of the family stand and the Kop would block the view of the pitch from the seats at either end of the new tier.

 

They might want to do something more interesting with it, with curves or whatever, but this might give an idea of the size of it, anyway.

[Bob Weasel Fox]

Fantastic mock up btw! That looks quality.

I was unsure about revealing my source before as the company I work for want to try and kit out the ground with new screens so I didn't want to potentially compromise anything.

We had Simon Capper (Finance Director) sitting on our table at the PFA awards and he told me about the stadium expansion.

Can't wait for this to happen

It needs to happen ASAP

Meant to ask, are you a Stone Roses fan by any chance?

[Sol thewall Bamba]

I'd imagine increasing the corporate seating would be the reason for possible expansion, thesedays in the Premiership ticket sales aren't that important for revenue.  If it isn't cost efficient theres no point in expansion.

Haha, an expansion isn't worth it becasue it won't make much money. Why not just shut the ground completely then and play at Belvoir drive if having fans there isn't a good revenue stream. 

[Bob Weasel Fox]

Haha, an expansion isn't worth it becasue it won't make much money. Why not just shut the ground completely then and play at Belvoir drive if having fans there isn't a good revenue stream.

I'm not sure I'm with Purpleronnie on that one

We need a stadium expansion desperately IMO

[David Hankey]

Anyone who thinks we don't need a larger capacity stadium simply doesn't follow football or understand what direction this Club is going in.

[Raw Dykes]

Fantastic mock up btw! That looks quality.

 

I was unsure about revealing my source before as the company I work for want to try and kit out the ground with new screens so I didn't want to potentially compromise anything.

 

We had Simon Capper (Finance Director) sitting on our table at the PFA awards and he told me about the stadium expansion.

 

Thanks! I can't wait to see it a reality.

 

Please don't feel pressure to reveal your source - I don't want anyone getting in trouble over some internet gossip.

 

I don't doubt that the owners want to go ahead with expanding the stadium. They know it's full every home game, and that there are thousands of fans who can't get a ticket. They also have been doing all the right things and more so far. They want the club to grow.

 

 

To those who think the owners might not bother because the extra cash isn't worth it:

 

a) It's still extra cash. Even if it turns out to be a relatively small amount each year, the club would still be better off financially in the long run whenever we're in the PL.

 

b) It's little risk. The owners are very well off, and I doubt they would see the cost as being a big obstacle.

 

c) Money isn't the only reason to expand. A bigger stadium would alter the perception of the club by the public, and the football world. A player might be shown around two different, but similar sized, clubs. One has a 32k seater stadium, the other has 42k. It's things like this that might make a difficult decision a bit easier. It might sway opinion and help attract certain players or staff. (Remember O'Neill saying he used to walk potential signings through the Filbert St. tunnel backwards, so that they would only see the Carling stand?)

 

A bigger stadium might set us apart from the WBAs, Sotons, Norwich's, etc. of this world in the eyes of most people. A PL title and an extra 10k seats might put us up a rung on that ladder.

[chapero82]

When could it be done cos we need it desperately

[Webbo]

 

 

A bigger stadium might set us apart from the WBAs, Sotons, Norwich's, etc. of this world in the eyes of most people. A PL title and an extra 10k seats might put us up a rung on that ladder.

Sheffield Wednesday has a nearly 40k stadium, it doesn't work like that.

[Guest CityFan 06]

When could it be done cos we need it desperately

 

There's a lot of rumours. The consensus from what I've seen seems it will probably be summer 2017 when the expansion takes place. 

[WigstonWanderer]

Don't see how anyone can realistically defend not expanding. Seems rather elitist to me, when there are many in this thread complaining about being unable to buy tickets.

One of the measures of a clubs size is its fan base. Expanding the stadium is quite obviously crucial to this as it allows youngsters to get to see the team and perhaps go on to a lifetime of support. Supporters are the absolute lifeblood of a club. They are bit-part actors in a much larger production. Without them there would simply be no atmosphere and no show!

Also, the bigger the home crowd the better the support for the team, and the more intimidating for the opposition. This would all help to attain success on the pitch.

Of course it needs to be done in a financially responsible way, but I don't believe it has to be net revenue positive as the benefits are far greater than simply financial.

[purpleronnie]

#

Haha, an expansion isn't worth it becasue it won't make much money. Why not just shut the ground completely then and play at Belvoir drive if having fans there isn't a good revenue stream. 

Well that makes a lot of sense.

Ticket sales bring in a tiny fraction of overall profits then why pour millions into more seats when investment in other areas will bring in much bigger profits? It's a business.

 

I'm not ruling out future expansion I'm just stating it doesn't make a lot of financial sense and that's a reason why it might not happen.

 

I actually hope they do expand.

[Raw Dykes]

Sheffield Wednesday has a nearly 40k stadium, it doesn't work like that.

 

Yeah, they've been in the lower leagues for 16 years.

 

I'm not claiming stadium size is the only determining factor in perceived club size. No disrespect, but if you'd read my whole comment, you'd know that already. It doesn't even look like you've read the little bit you quoted.

[chapero82]

There's a lot of rumours. The consensus from what I've seen seems it will probably be summer 2017 when the expansion takes place.

. Thanks for that Top has just been on radio saying plans are in place for an extra 10 thousand