London's Wembley stadium is "facing a crisis over the re-selling of their 10-year debenture seats that underpin the business plan of the national stadium," according to Charles Sale of the London DAILY MAIL. The contracts for the vast majority of the 17,500 corporate seats expire in '17, and surveys of the Club Wembley membership "are reported to show the percentage of those prepared to renew for another decade is alarmingly low." The seats "were sold during an economic boom," with a minimum package costing around £50,000 ($76,000). However, a "considerable number of those corporate customers believe Wembley’s annual calendar of matches doesn’t represent anything like value for money," with this year’s 150th anniversary fixture list being an exception. Wembley Managing Dir Roger Maslin "insists a lot more debenture holders are prepared" to renew than the paltry 20% claimed by Club Wembley insiders. However, even Maslin said he would "probably choose not to" commit for another decade. The likelihood is that Wembley "will have to offer contracts of three, five or seven years next time, with a lower joining fee, to have any chance of holding on to their unsettled Club Wembley patrons" (DAILY MAIL, 6/7).
