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http://www.standard.co.uk/sport/foo...take-tottenham-to-another-level-a3537456.html
Daniel Levy exclusive: This is our time to shine... new stadium can take Tottenham to another level
EXCLUSIVE
It is difficult to argue that Daniel Levy lacks ambition. Not only is the Tottenham chairman determined to make his club a superpower, he wants to help transform the local area into one of the most attractive in London.
Sunday’s match against Manchester United will bring down the curtain on 118 years of football at White Hart Lane. After what they hope will be only one season at Wembley, Tottenham return home to occupy their 61,559-seat stadium. The overall cost of that project is about £800million.
Levy believes that the move to the new ground will allow Tottenham to compete with Europe’s elite. Clearly, there are challenges ahead. It will not be easy to recreate the intensity of White Hart Lane immediately, however impressive the plans for a new ground may be.
Moving home is hard enough, even if you will be only a stone’s throw from the old place. Moving home while attempting to improve the land around you is trickier still. Yet Levy, chairman since 2001, is confident he can deliver — and called on both the public and private sector to support his ideas.
“It is Tottenham’s time to shine now,” Levy told Standard Sport. “We are the largest employer and economic driver in north Tottenham and we are making an unprecedented private sector investment of nearly £1billion in the area. We need to see all of this capitalised upon by both the public and private sector.
“It is Tottenham’s time to shine now,” Levy told Standard Sport. “We are the largest employer and economic driver in north Tottenham and we are making an unprecedented private sector investment of nearly £1billion in the area. We need to see all of this capitalised upon by both the public and private sector.
If Levy can realise his scheme, he will deserve considerable praise. Sporting reality means, however, that any regeneration project, no matter how admirable, risks being overshadowed if results on the pitch decline.
Levy has already said Tottenham will be “sensible” in their spending as they manage the transition from one stadium to another. Yet even if the initial process is tough, the Tottenham hierarchy are confident the move will pay off in the long term.
One reason is the increased revenue Tottenham will generate from home games. According to the Deloitte Football Money League for the 2015-16 season, Spurs were the only one of the top six clubs not to break £50million on matchdays.
Manchester United led the way with £102.8m, followed by Arsenal with £99.9m, Chelsea with £69.7m, Liverpool with £56.8m and Manchester City with £52.5m. Spurs took £40.8m. The disparity may be even greater this season, as Tottenham needed to reduce the capacity of White Hart Lane to about 32,000 in order to allow construction work on their new ground to proceed.
Levy acknowledged: “We have been competing against teams with matchday revenues that far outstrip ours and a restricted capacity that has meant our growing fanbase has not been able to get to games. The new stadium will take us to another level globally.”
Spurs hope support will arrive from the US. Two years ago, the club announced a 10-year deal to host at least two NFL games per year in the new stadium.
That requires a retractable pitch at the new ground, plus dressing room and medical facilities to meet the needs of an NFL squad. The NFL is believed to have contributed about £10m so far to Spurs’ stadium project. Should there ever be an NFL franchise in London, Tottenham’s new stadium would be an obvious base.
Levy explained: “We wanted to create something beyond a stadium in Tottenham. Us being here as a Premier League team already delivers a global profile for Tottenham and a significant socio-economic contribution on the ground. Bringing the NFL delivers a whole new dimension, audience and impact for not just the area but wider London. It will be the only stadium purpose built outside the United States to host NFL games so we hope the NFL starts to think of it as its home in London.”
In charge for the better part of two decades, Levy knows there is still much to do. Sunday will be an emotional day for anyone with links to Tottenham. The celebrations are sure to be memorable — but after Spurs wave goodbye, the focus will turn decisively to the future. Levy is likely to be at the heart of things for a long time to come. He added: “It has been an immense journey and one that is far from over. Right now, it’s a great time to be a Spurs fan.
“I remember coming here with my uncle more than 50 years ago to watch my first game against QPR, wearing a huge rosette.
“It is hard to pick out one single memory as a favourite, as there have been so many. I’m always clear that we are merely the custodians of the club — it was here long before any of us and will be here long after us all.
“It is simply our turn to look after it, grow it and support it.”
Daniel Levy exclusive: This is our time to shine... new stadium can take Tottenham to another level
EXCLUSIVE
It is difficult to argue that Daniel Levy lacks ambition. Not only is the Tottenham chairman determined to make his club a superpower, he wants to help transform the local area into one of the most attractive in London.
Sunday’s match against Manchester United will bring down the curtain on 118 years of football at White Hart Lane. After what they hope will be only one season at Wembley, Tottenham return home to occupy their 61,559-seat stadium. The overall cost of that project is about £800million.
Levy believes that the move to the new ground will allow Tottenham to compete with Europe’s elite. Clearly, there are challenges ahead. It will not be easy to recreate the intensity of White Hart Lane immediately, however impressive the plans for a new ground may be.
Moving home is hard enough, even if you will be only a stone’s throw from the old place. Moving home while attempting to improve the land around you is trickier still. Yet Levy, chairman since 2001, is confident he can deliver — and called on both the public and private sector to support his ideas.
“It is Tottenham’s time to shine now,” Levy told Standard Sport. “We are the largest employer and economic driver in north Tottenham and we are making an unprecedented private sector investment of nearly £1billion in the area. We need to see all of this capitalised upon by both the public and private sector.
“It is Tottenham’s time to shine now,” Levy told Standard Sport. “We are the largest employer and economic driver in north Tottenham and we are making an unprecedented private sector investment of nearly £1billion in the area. We need to see all of this capitalised upon by both the public and private sector.
If Levy can realise his scheme, he will deserve considerable praise. Sporting reality means, however, that any regeneration project, no matter how admirable, risks being overshadowed if results on the pitch decline.
Levy has already said Tottenham will be “sensible” in their spending as they manage the transition from one stadium to another. Yet even if the initial process is tough, the Tottenham hierarchy are confident the move will pay off in the long term.
One reason is the increased revenue Tottenham will generate from home games. According to the Deloitte Football Money League for the 2015-16 season, Spurs were the only one of the top six clubs not to break £50million on matchdays.
Manchester United led the way with £102.8m, followed by Arsenal with £99.9m, Chelsea with £69.7m, Liverpool with £56.8m and Manchester City with £52.5m. Spurs took £40.8m. The disparity may be even greater this season, as Tottenham needed to reduce the capacity of White Hart Lane to about 32,000 in order to allow construction work on their new ground to proceed.
Levy acknowledged: “We have been competing against teams with matchday revenues that far outstrip ours and a restricted capacity that has meant our growing fanbase has not been able to get to games. The new stadium will take us to another level globally.”
Spurs hope support will arrive from the US. Two years ago, the club announced a 10-year deal to host at least two NFL games per year in the new stadium.
That requires a retractable pitch at the new ground, plus dressing room and medical facilities to meet the needs of an NFL squad. The NFL is believed to have contributed about £10m so far to Spurs’ stadium project. Should there ever be an NFL franchise in London, Tottenham’s new stadium would be an obvious base.
Levy explained: “We wanted to create something beyond a stadium in Tottenham. Us being here as a Premier League team already delivers a global profile for Tottenham and a significant socio-economic contribution on the ground. Bringing the NFL delivers a whole new dimension, audience and impact for not just the area but wider London. It will be the only stadium purpose built outside the United States to host NFL games so we hope the NFL starts to think of it as its home in London.”
In charge for the better part of two decades, Levy knows there is still much to do. Sunday will be an emotional day for anyone with links to Tottenham. The celebrations are sure to be memorable — but after Spurs wave goodbye, the focus will turn decisively to the future. Levy is likely to be at the heart of things for a long time to come. He added: “It has been an immense journey and one that is far from over. Right now, it’s a great time to be a Spurs fan.
“I remember coming here with my uncle more than 50 years ago to watch my first game against QPR, wearing a huge rosette.
“It is hard to pick out one single memory as a favourite, as there have been so many. I’m always clear that we are merely the custodians of the club — it was here long before any of us and will be here long after us all.
“It is simply our turn to look after it, grow it and support it.”
