AFC Bournemouth owner Bill Foley has spoken about his plans for a 20,000-seater stadium.
The American owner was talking to subscription website The Athletic, in a wide-ranging interview, (which is a brilliant read in its entirety), Foley covered planned improvements to the match day experience at Dean Court, the new training ground complex at Canford Heath, hopes for his multi-club model alongside French club Lorient, how he hopes to build AFC Bournemouth into a club that no longer fears relegation, sponsorship deals, NHL Ice Hockey side Las Vegas Golden Knights and, of course, the pressing matter of the stadium situation.
The Cherries home of the Vitality Stadium/Dean Court was completed just over 20 years ago, built on zero budget for a club in the lower leagues of England’s football pyramid.
It was sold a few years later in a sale and leaseback deal with Structadene during a period of financial instability for the club (somewhat of an understatement) and that lease expires in just a few short years time.
Bill Foley appears to be set on one thing, remaining in Kings Park, but as for either building a brand new stadium or redeveloping the current Dean Court ground, he appears to still have an open mind.
He told The Athletic…
“…We really have two choices. We still have five years on our lease at the stadium. The South Stand is a temporary stand, so if we wanted to renovate the stadium we could tear that down and put about 5,000 seats down there with a two-tier deck and have it wrap around and join the Main Stand. The trouble is, you would then need to build a second deck there and almost push it over the Main Stand, and we’d still be stuck with the concourses and inadequate hospitality…
Redeveloping the current ground holds numerous limitations. But redevelopment could prove to be quicker and cheaper. Many of the Dean Court faithful believed that not being able to strike a deal to buy-back the current stadium was the biggest prohibiting factor behind that train of thought, Foley however doesn’t see that as much of a stumbling block.
He continued…
“We have an advantage because it can only be a stadium (there is currently a sporting-use covenant on the land) and we only have five years on our lease…”
“…So, the clock is ticking. We know they’ll sell us the stadium at a reasonable price and that price gets more reasonable the longer we wait. If we move out, I guess they could go back to the council and say “We’ll tear it down and build affordable housing”, which is fine but that could take a while, so time is on our side.
“But I wrestle with this with Jim (Frevola, AFC Bournemouth president of operations) and Neill (Blake, AFC Bournemouth chief executive): can we improve the stadium or do we have to build a new one, with all the procedural headaches that might come with that?”
The alternative option is a brand new stadium, built in the grounds of Kings Park. The more attractive, but equally, more costly option. Which is Bill’s preferred option? It isn’t quite clear, but there is clear enthusiasm from the American businessman behind the idea of building something new.
Foley added…
“…the best approach is to try to build a new stadium and to do it economically, spend £80-90million ($99.6m-$112.1m), with the right hospitality and about 20,000 seats. We don’t need much more than that but we do need to open up our ticketing to new fans…”
“…We’ve established the budget, we have our plan. We’re going to three different firms to develop the design, based on our budget. We have to stick to it. I can’t afford to spend £120-150million on something that won’t return value. We’ll have a functional stadium, with the right hospitality assets. That’s where the ticket sales and food and beverage sales are — it’s the piece of the puzzle we need.
“We’ve been in touch with the local authorities. The land is available. We’ve got to move a running track, which isn’t that big of a deal. The actual stadium will go where our training pitches are. The only thing that gives me pause is if we could somehow rehabilitate the current stadium by adding 8,500 seats and make it work; it would be easier because I could do it in stages and wouldn’t need to spend so much right away. I’d start with the South Stand next year. I’m just not sure how doable it is. There is a plan but I’m not sure if it will give us the extra suites we need…”
Your say…
Sorry Roger said…
Three thoughts from me:
1) going public might be a way of concentrating Structadene’s mind about a potential sale, and subsequent expansion of DC. Bill Foley has certainly left that door open in his comments.
2) whether by expansion or a new stadium, our owners will be 100% focused on revenue generation, which means premium seats/hospitality boxes/bars etc. So their priority will be adding those over increasing capacity per se. For example, Brentford have about 2,900 premium seats in a 17k stadium. Another example, Amex card holders can pay c. £250 & VAT to watch Brighton from the American Express lounge, complete with parking, a meal, programme etc. Expect to see various Vitality lounges, “1910 Club seating” packages etc because any development will prioritise those 3,000/4,000 seats that will bring in the bulk of additional revenue.
3) ultimately it’s Bill Foley’s risk, money and budget. If the numbers work for a 20k stadium that pays for itself then it’s a revenue-generating asset we’ve never had before. – To join the conversation, click here.
I think Mr Foley has got a vision for our club , the size is about right . With the last opportunity seems right to me with a small financial layout on the existing site .With the south stand being the first to be developed. With the others to follow not too far in the future.
We need a stadium that we can be proud of with enough seats for all our supporters, who want attend live games. We need to take this club into the next level. Not to be the butt of the jokes from other teams .