Tottenham Hotspur Chair Daniel Levy "penned an emotional letter to Tottenham fans ahead of the final game at White Hart Lane," according to Ben Burrows of the London INDEPENDENT. After 118 years, the club brought "the curtain down on the famous old ground" when it played ManU on Sunday. Levy wrote, "This is the day. This is the match. This is our last time at the Lane and the day on which we shall bid our grand old home a fond farewell. I have been coming to the Lane for over 50 years and many of you for much longer. It holds memories for us all. So we should take a moment to look around and recognise the momentous and poignant occasion of which we are now part. ... It is a humbling occasion too -- this Club and this stadium have been here longer than any of us and the Club and new stadium will be here long after us all -- we are merely the custodians of this great institution. It's our turn to look after it, grow it and support it. ... The Lane has rocked this season -- your support has been immense and I know it has made a difference" (INDEPENDENT, 5/14). In London, Tom Farmery reported to mark the club's final game at White Hart Lane, supporters "turned up hours before" the 4:30pm kickoff. Shirts with "I was there" emblazoned on them were bought as fans "tried at every opportunity to lock away their special day in their minds for evermore." When the players "finally emerged," the "roar was unforgettable and the emotion immeasurable." A "special moment only added to by the players wearing special embroidered shirts noting the occasion." In the matchday program, Tottenham Manager Mauricio Pochettino wrote, "The Lane is a place of passion and unbelievable atmosphere" (DAILY MAIL, 5/14).
COST TO COMPETE: In London, Oliver Kay wrote between Southend United's move to Roots Hall in '55 and Scunthorpe United's relocation to Glanford Park in '88, "no English professional football club built a new stadium." One by one, though, "the spiritual homes of the English game, most of them dating back to Victorian times, are disappearing." The '90s brought the "belated realisation," after the Hillsborough disaster, that the "dilapidated old grounds needed to be modernised or replaced to meet safety standards." A "second wave has come in more recent years as clubs have sought to capitalise on the heightened commercial demands of the Premier League boom." Tottenham has competed with the richest Premier League clubs on the pitch over the past few seasons, but that "threatens to become more and more difficult as the financial divide widens." Last season, the club made £41M in matchday revenue. To put that in context, ManU made £107M, Arsenal £100M and Chelsea £70M. Tottenham hopes that a naming rights deal for the new stadium will earn £400M ($515.6M), "half the overall cost, over a 20-year period." With the "vastly increased capacity, not least in corporate areas, the stadium is quickly expected to pay for itself." Can it legitimately be called a "new" stadium? Terry Venables, the club’s former player and manager, initially suggested not. "They're not really going anywhere, are they?" Venables said, suggesting the new stadium will "still be White Hart Lane" and that "nostalgia, to use the old joke, ain't what it used to be" (LONDON TIMES, 5/13).
GAMING REVENUE: Also in London, Miller & Harris reported Tottenham is "hoping to earn" up to £3M ($3.9M) per event at its new stadium by '19 "simply from staging video game tournaments." Club Exec Dir Donna-Maria Cullen confirmed that the club wants to "bring a wide range" of non-football action to its new home, including "lucrative" major esports events. The club wants the new White Hart Lane to "become a go-to venue" for esports "as the craze takes off" in the U.K. Tottenham "could realistically generate" £2.5M ($3.2M) from ticket sales per event, with 50,000 "normal" tickets at up to £30 ($38.67) and the balance sold as "high-priced corporate seats." The club could also generate between £500,000 ($644,500) and £1M ($1.29M) per event from sponsorship deals, catering and merchandise sales, plus "additional commercial spin-offs" (
DAILY MAIL, 5/13).
