Pearlman said that expanding Liberty Stadium is among the items on Swansea's agenda.GETTY IMAGES
Premier League side Swansea City COO Chris Pearlman is confident the club's Liberty Stadium lease deal will allow the club to capitalize on "previously untapped revenue streams, but has vowed a cautious approach will be taken over ground expansion," according to Andrew Gwilym of WALES ONLINE. The American also "outright dismissed suggestions of any potential asset-stripping of the stadium" now that it is under the control of the football club. Following 12 months of discussions, the Swans and Swansea Council signed a long-term lease agreement to take control of the Stadium Management Company. Pro14 side Ospreys will "continue to play at the Liberty as part of the deal, and have welcomed the agreement." Previously, matters such as naming rights, stand sponsorship and in-stadium signage "were all handled by the Stadium Management Company." Stadium expansion, an item that has "long been on the agenda, will be assessed by a consultancy firm." Pearlman: "We have just hired a consultant to take a look at a few important factors such as the number of seats based upon our current waiting list, the size of the market we are in and comparisons with other stadiums of a similar size. Once we have those figures, we will know what is a reasonable amount of money to price tickets or hospitality at with the new seats." When asked about the "potential cost of expansion," Pearlman outlined that outlets such as naming right sales would be utilized to provide capital, with Swansea majority shareholders Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan "also using their business and finance connections." He said, "The honest answer is we do not have a specific budget set aside right now, but once we know what the costs and potential revenues are we will go out and talk to people about the best ways to potentially get money to invest in the stadium" (WALES ONLINE, 2/21).
