Liverpool’s plans for a further stadium expansion could hit a roadblock according to the chief executive Ian Ayre. While Anfield did see an increase of 8,500 seats in the main stand this season, another expansion of 6,000-7,000 seats is unfeasible for Ayre.
The Premier League club was given the green light for a redevelopment of the iconic stadium in September 2014. While the first part of the construction took place with the extra seats, the second part of the development is yet to be complete and the total expenditure for this is expected to be close to £260m.
As quoted by the Belfast Telegraph, Ayre was speaking at a meeting with the Liverpool Supporters’ Committee (LSC).
“A stand behind a goal doesn’t have the benefit of hospitality that would go a long way to meet the redevelopment costs.
“If you consider the redevelopment of Anfield Road from a purely general admission perspective, building, say, 6,000 extra seats to take the capacity up to 60,000 would cost somewhere between £60m and £70m.
“At £12,000 to £13,000 per seat, it would take approximately 15 years to pay back, which is not a smart investment for the business. Therefore the club needs to find a rounded solution that’s in the best interests of the football club.”
New expansion will take close to six years to be paid off
While many will argue that the club actually brought in more than 8,000 seats in the latest expansion. The time taken to pay off this development would not be more than six years thanks to a number of hospitality seats installed. Half of the 8,500 seats are stated to be hospitality seats.
The development for these seats cost a reported £114m, but Ayre did point out that Anfield Road would not be able to pay itself off this quickly.
While a number of fans were ready to chip in and start the development of the Anfield Road Stand, the chief executive wanted a more feasible solution so as not to burden the club anymore.
Graham Smith, a fan representative on the LSC, said: “There are people who would think a 15-year return would make sense, and that’s the supporters. The supporters would fund such a development up front if the club made an appeal for financial support.”
Ayre was also quoted as saying that the club needed time “ensure that what it has put in place works…the club has to find the right economic model, and only then will it be the right time to move forward”.
Liverpool need more seats
While there is no doubt that the 8,500 additional seats are a great financial boost for the club. There are a number of fans who are not willing to pay the crazy amounts for hospitality seating. They need more economical seats to enjoy the game and the Reds have to cater to this fan base.
The Reds had to scrap plans to increase ticket prices after many protests last season and that is a route they would want to avoid. Ayre is right to be thinking of a new way of generating the funds for a further expansion, maybe it is time to bring in more sponsors, just like they did with Malaysian Airlines.
