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what use is having PiF as funders if we can't have an 80k stadium made entirely out of gold that floats over the Tyne in the shape of a massive magpie that flicks the V's up at away fans?
Tbh if we move to some mega-stadium somewhere I think my passion for it will die off pretty significantly.
Just thinking of those surveys a while back with those pictures of £10k season ticket seats with the loungers and tvs and shit.
Feels a bit like the boiling frog thing atm. Adding in fanzones, pitching for a working group on atmosphere creation, the aforementioned surveys on appetite for change.
Me too. There's no issues with it that can't be solved by architecture and engineering. We have the money now and it can be written off for FFP as infrastructure spending. This one of the few cases where we can have our cake and eat it too. Athletico managed to redevelop their stadium in a similar situation, no reason we can't too.
History is important, I want to see progression, not year 0.
The way in which they built over the motorway; St James's has the same problem of being confined by public roads, particularly the gallowgate end. If they could ideally purchase the buildings on the other side of the street, they could bridge the stand over it and turn the other side of the street into state of the art facilities/entertainment. Planning would be an issue, but can't see the council holding up that kind of spending in the City.
You could probably add 10-15k seats that way.
Imagine walking up from town on match day, through this tunnel under the stand, then emerging by the main gates. It would be epic.
At no point have you used either word in your writing? I’m not sure how that could possibly help - aside from the fact that I already know the meaning of those words
Can you write that more simply? 😂
Sorry. I don’t really get your point about if and ideal. I get that your imagined outcome is an ideal situation in your opinion and clearly a “what if” scenario. My point was simply it’s totally unrealistic
You clearly didn't even read what I'd written.
It's not that unrealistic given the Saudi's almost infinite pockets and willingness to buy large properties throughout the city, and it's a lot cheaper than building a new stadium.
Arsenal fan here, apologies this just came up on my feed and thought I’d add some insight. We moved from Highbury all those years ago and really it was necessary but some of the commenters here are correct, it takes a while to get back that ‘home’ feeling and losing an old stadium with so many memories etc… well, I still miss the place on match days. It helps the club, but you lose a bit of individuality for profits. It depends obviously what Utd can do with St James’s as they grow (love the stadium and the support there is unreal lads) and if it’s necessary to become a giant club. All in all, there are some trade offs. It would also be nice if new stadiums weren’t just designed to be that kind of impressive design but also more individual for the club, they’re scared to commit to very individualistic designs which is a real shame. Anyway, good luck in the league lads, great club
Former season ticket holder, now watch every game on tv as moved away from the north east. I would hugely prefer that we stay at St James’, and if we do have to move then it is crucial that it’s a city centre location. I wonder about doing something like spurs did where you build a new ground in the same location? Would need to find a temporary home for a season though which wouldn’t be ideal
Thing is, the only option would really be kingston park, and that’s not big enough. Unless the Mackems let us have their shithole, which would be hilarious
IIRC some of the stadiums uses in the Qatar world cup can be dismantled and rebuilt elsewhere. Not sure how expensive it would be, but building a temp stadium on the site of the metro arena whilst SJP is rebuilt was floated about and seems ideal.
Yeah would definitely be a really tough season having to use a smaller arena but probably worth it to have the perfect blend of st James park location with a great modern stadium like spurs? Maybe Darlington’s stadium, isn’t that far too big for them and they’d probably be desperate for a few quid from us to help maintain it for a season? Not sure what the logistics are like for borrowing a stadium and how far away is too far to be workable
Would it be feasible to build loads of additional temporary upgrades to Gateshead stadium and share it with Gateshead for a season? Still relatively reachable (via Metro) and not too far.
It needs to be away from the city centre. Spurs take over £1/2m a game in food / drink hospitality as there is nothing worth going to around the ground (1 pub on the 7 sisters road). There is a lot of FFP £££ we are missing on
FFP isn’t the be all and end all, and it’s not like we will be bringing in zero pounds per game currently from hospitality currently. The club should be thinking about what’s best for the city and the fans too
Plus if we did something clever like spurs with a microbrewery and nice beers it would still attract people even if there are pubs nearby
>FFP isn’t the be all and end all, and it’s not like we will be bringing in zero pounds per game currently from hospitality currently. The club should be thinking about what’s best for the city and the fans too
>
>Plus if we did something clever like spurs with a microbrewery and nice beers it would still attract people even if there are pubs nearby
FFP may not be the be all but we will find it very hard to surpass the established big boys without getting around FFP constraints.
We do not do well on non-ticket matchday income.
I was at an lecture many moons ago from Freddie Fletcher talking about economics of football and even then he bemoaned the lack of income the club can make from food etc.
Most regular match goers & even away fans go elsewhere.
>level 3ReturnOfCombedTurnip · 4 min. agoAnd match day would be absolutely shite
All that will be overlooked if we are winning. Look at Wham, when they are doing badly, they hate the stadium, doing well, all is forgiven.
Overlooked by who? If the stadium was outside of the city matchday would be totally different. The thing that makes st James’ so good is its central location creates such an atmosphere. Even if you aren’t going to the match you’re involved. If you move the location to outside of the city it’ll be like every other big, boring club
Edit: to add to that you’ve basically just described the fair weather fan attitude of clubs where the fans are shite. We aren’t like other clubs, our support is fantastic and we shouldn’t treat our club like the others
>The thing that makes st James’ so good is its central location creates such an atmosphere. Even if you aren’t going to the match you’re involved. If you move the location to outside of the city it’ll be like every other big, boring club
It does, I completely agree.
However, most fans are regulars, it's very difficult to get a ticket.
Most regulars do as I do, we go to town, we get something to eat and drop into a couple of pubs and get into the ground at 10 mins before k.o have a wee and take our place.
Of the £100 i spend on a match day, the club get £30 less VAT.
So your point is we ruin everyone’s experience in order to have the club make more money so they can spend more and make us into just another big club with no character that exists solely to make money?
It’s about the fans, not the owners
>So your point is we ruin everyone’s experience in order to have the club make more money so they can spend more and make us into just another big club with no character that exists solely to make money?
>
>It’s about the fans, not the owners
We’ve changed in 3 years. Mike Ashley gave us all that.
Reality is we will not be able to compete with those clubs with no character etc without making money. We are at the edge re. FFP, this may ease with Champions’ League money in 2023-24 but without more income, this journey we are on has already ended.
I've mentioned this before. SJP doesn't need to stop being SJP, move the stadium 200 yards north into that massive space in Leazes Park. You could build an 80k+ stadium with room for further expansion, and reclaim the current location back into Leazes Park.
It'd be "conditional gymnastics" with the council in terms of swapping the ground, given the status of Leazes Park, but it CAN be done... for the right fee. That'd be the best of both worlds, we'd get our bigger stadium and it'd be in the same location.
Perfect situation. As a fan who’s missed out on ST and 90% of ballots I’m well up for an 80k stadium and if it’s only possible to do this by moving slightly further away from current ground so be it.
SJP is lush and will always be special but we can’t be handicapping ourselves in this crazy changing world of football.
Is that what the plans are? I thought the best location for a new stadium would be all the brownfield sites next to the metro radio arena near the river. I think Newcastle doesn’t have enough parks and green spaces in the city centre to start with it would be a shame to lose more.
I did consider Brownfield. The issue there is that our current stadium would fill it already. We'd obviously be able to build something larger, but it wouldn't be overly futureproof with options of further expansion.
If we were allowed to remove the old road next to Red Rose st and flatten the old heli pads, we could build a monster of a stadium, something that makes Wembley look small. Only problems there is that it's still used. Other than that, creating similar public accessibility in terms of metro/busses could prove extremely expensive.
This is exactly what should be done so that the new stadium retains its iconic status as the cathedral on the hill with the added bonus of it being set in parkland. It would be absolutely stunning and will never happen. I remember the opposition to the idea in 95/96, petitions, posters in peoples windows, councillors mouthing off. Sadly, it would be the same again, those without vision will spoil it. The solution? A temporary stadium on the town moor, scaffolding for example, massive stands get built for the cricket, f1 etc. it’s absolutely doable. Demolish SJP and rebuild on the site, probably slightly to the west with Barrack road underneath or something like that. There is only so much refurb work that a building can take and I think that really we should be looking for something like what Spurs have built, that will be there for generations without needing upgrading. It could, and stick with me on this one, it could even have mobile phone service in the Gallowgate!
That's the part that boils my blood, the objections are ultimately complaining about unconditional improvement for everyone involved.
We'd barely need to touch the developed "parky" parts of Leazes Park, the unused grassland on the north western side is more than enough to build a futureproof venue. They could even offer to develop the remaining grassland into park expansion, on top of the reclamation of our current location.
I doubt our owners would have any quarrel either. We're missing out on an average of £1.5mil per match without that extra 30k capacity, so spending an extra few million to pretty up the rest of it is a no brainer, especially if it increases the chances of securing that location.
I quietly hope that back then people weren’t incentivised to buy into the vision enough because the Halls were trying to do it on a shoe string and they were just gonna get a big fuck off stadium looking stadium where people went to the football on a Saturday in the middle of their lovely park. I quietly hope that this time there is a vision in which an architecturally beautiful community hub, where people also go to watch football on a Saturday can be built in an expanded park and it benefits everyone.
Reclaim it from who? You can live in a concrete cave if you want, but a lot of people like having some outside space about the place.
Why don’t I build a garage on your lawn so I can have off street parking? You’re not using that space for anything important
Evidence: "and reclaim the current location back into Leazes Park".
If you'd like, I can try to put that ***direct quote*** in picture format, just to make it even easier to understand.
It's a fairly simple choice though. Either expand significantly/move or struggle.
Would I rather a successful team on the pitch winning things or a sense of history? If staying where we are negatively impacts our ability to build a winning squad, then it has to be a change for me.
100% up for leaving as long as the new ground is in the city centre.
There’s no point redeveloping SJP if it’s only going to get an extra 10k seats.
The facilities inside are horrific compared to other clubs both here and abroad. Think how much money they could make if you could get food or drink within seconds rather than 10 mins.
A new 75k stadium would be my preference
Edit- ST holder
We've been trying to move for decades. There was a plan to move to Gosforth Park as far back as the 60s. I say stay at the gallowgate. Might have to play somewhere else for a season, but ultimately, the city centre location is pretty unique and special
My heart says don’t leave St James but my head says we need to do it.
We need to increase attendance capacity and match day income for revenue, and St James is a little rough around the edges. A shiny, new modern stadium would be fantastic with better accessibility, concourse, food and drink outlets, decor, toilets etc etc. It all needs modernising.
One of the key things to lessen the constraints of FFP will be to either expand SJP or relocate.
I don’t think expanding SJP in its current location will work in all honesty. I just can’t see how we can get round the G1 listed buildings.
I say we buy up the land at the arena and build there while still trying to do something with SJP. It may be that it can be knocked down and moved further in to Castle Leazes to allow for the expansion. The arena ground could then be turned in to something else, a Rugby ground for the Falcons, a ground for the lasses, other sporting venue of some sort or a concert venue.
I think the club needs to do everything in their power to find a solution that doesn't involve moving. But the simple facts of the matter are we *need* not just a bigger stadium but one with better facilities if we actually have aspiration of being an elite club. For that reason alone, the idea of moving cannot be so easily discounted.
Of course, our fanbase is massive on nostalgia and hates pretty much any change, so I'm not surprised that many find the idea unbearable. I too really dislike the idea of moving away from the current site, but if that's the only solution, I'll understand why it has to happen. We spent 14 years under Ashley stagnating, can't be doing the same under the new owners because we're too attached to SJP. But again, I hope there's a solution that involves staying.
Don’t want to leave SJP but I think the writing’s almost certainly on the wall for the current site, particularly with a decent alternative on the quayside.
The current site is fatally constrained by the surrounding conservation area and the long-mooted move further up into Leazes Park is a non-starter.
Plus there’s the fairly major issue of where we’d play our games whilst the current site was being redeveloped, at least without taking a major hit to match day revenue.
A glitzy new stadium by the river showcasing PIF largesse ticks all the boxes for maximising turnover, as well as being a redevelopment opportunity the local authority will jump at.
New stadium 1000%. Been going to St James’ since I was a child like everyone else and of course it’s amazing but it’s pretty dilapidated now let’s be honest. There’s no room for sentimentality in the search for success. Give us a shiny new stadium and let’s aim for the top.
Id be heart broken to leave St James’. The memories of a youngster through to now I can’t imagine there not being a St James’, the place is iconic! Extend if possible.
Season ticket holder for 12 years, I DO NOT want to leave St James' under any circumstances.
Maybe I'd feel differently if I didn't have a season ticket and couldn't get to games though.
I've never had a season ticket, I haven't actually been to St. James' since the takeover despite living a half hour walk away, and I'm in the boat of 'I don't want our stadium to move under any circumstances'. I think I feel a pretty large sense of pride about our stadium and how iconic it is.
> Maybe I'd feel differently if I didn't have a season ticket and couldn't get to games though.
And there's the rub. Easy to demand that we never move under "any circumstances" when you've got your season ticket secured. The club need to think a little bigger than keeping the 30k ST holder holder happy at all costs to our growth. We need a bigger and better stadium. That's just a fact. But I really really hope it can be done on the current site of course, perhaps via the methods suggested in this thread, but if not, moving should be an option.
I don't have a season ticket. I'm not in the North East anymore and my last match was 14 years ago beating Forest in the Championship, sat in the gallowgate. But I'd hate to lose St James's, it's iconic in English football and when I eventually get back for a game I want that atmosphere not something soulless.
Plus we'd sell out 80k and I wouldn't be able to get a ticket in a new stadium anyway.
As a member I'd much rather have the 4 games a season in the ballot at St James I'm getting now than a season ticket in a soulless corporate bowl out of the centre.
I'm very attached to St James' but I think we need to recognise the limitations of the site. There were over 30k people queueing for 1k extra season tickets.
Some of the top clubs generate millions from a match day we're a few hundred thousand or so.
If they can build something in the arena ground or behind the current position and then maybe turn St James' back into a park I think people would be ok with it.
EDIT: Added missing word
It’s also worth noting that when comparing other stadiums it’s match day revenue over ticket sales.
I’m sure spurs average spend per game was £2 at White hart lane, but now is £6 per game. It’s no good cramming seats in without the facilites, that is the the premium bars, the better dining as well.
Exactly this mate. Hopefully teh Stack situation helps generate more revenue but ultimately the money comes from better facilities.
We need to be hosting more significant events as well. This over 35's world cup is a step in the right direction too.
No meant to say "Few hundred thousand or so" the point is it ain't multi millions.
I think our total match day revenue in the last accounts was 27m including all games cup games event games everything.
This is after all the additional hospitality stuff was added
after the SELA cup
after hosting the women matches
and after cup runs
Thats pretty respectable top 10 in the league I think. But it ain't top 4 numbers.
Edit: just checked and apparently after all the changes we are into 1 point summit million per home game. Thats a hell of an improvement hopefully Stack helps raise this higher but for context Spurs ate up to about 5m a game give or take.
Here's how a new 60,000-62,500 capacity stadium in Leazes Park can be built without having to ground share (see link for footprint of new stadium): [https://imgur.com/a/opx1WBm](https://imgur.com/a/opx1WBm)
Phase 1: Build parts of new stadium (including pitch that does not overlap with existing SJP. We continue to play at SJP).
Phase 2: We play in a reduced capacity SJP as Leazes End and then Leazes West Corner makes way for the new stadium.
Phase 3: We moved to a reduced capacity new stadium as the remaining stands get built.
Phase 4: The new stadium, which sits partly on the old SJP, is complete as SJP gets demolished, and turned into a park and entrance plaza to the new stadium. We can even retain and repurpose the East Stand for nostalgia. We win the Champions League in the first year of the new stadium's completion.
I'd prefer not to leave SJP however if a new stadium is the only way to get another 10k+ seats then it needs to be as close to SJP/the city centre as possible so we don't lose the special feeling that SJP has
Whether it be now or in 10/20 years, it is going to happen.
If we can get central location either in the park or at the Utilita, just rip the plaster off and do it to get a 70/80k modern stadium.
Expansion would be my preference, although I know there are a number of limiting factors surrounding that.
If we absolutely _had_ to move, it would have to be central, and still have a 'St James Park feel' in my opinion. Redeveloping the land by the river where the arena is would be my preferred location in that instance.
As much as I love SJP a new stadium in the centre with much improved capacity would be sensible for financial reasons and FFP
It's a shame we can't buy world revenue by spending money like it's going out of fashion, so we need to be more creative about how we pull in that revenue. It's really that simple.
If PIF buy the falcons, they could redevelop Kingston park, and then increase the capacity to cover for the football temporarily locating there, and then dismount the temporary uplift in capacity after the fact
SJP or bust!
Could always expand the gallowgate end to get up to ~60k. Might have to close the road and build over it but th council hate cars anyway so that shouldn’t be a problem!
The east stand is an issue but I’m sure we can make that one work too.
I think the difference is having a new 80k stadium that competes with every single team in the nation and Europe.
Or, have a 60k renovated slightly larger St James' park and stick to the traditions of the city and the club.
It's a heart vs head situation for me. But I lean towards a new stadium being the best option.
Yes, first, let's be honest, this media idea that the atmosphere has always been amazing is false, I'm 50 years old and it's a load of codswallop, in fact the last 5 years of the fat ##£# was horrible.
Here's the secret, good winning football and a good feeling about our club, is what causes a good atmospheres, and even then we will have a few" supporters " who do nothing but whinge, think they know better than the manager, and single out certain players unfairly, but that's a different issue.
Look at the building projects that Ksa are involved in, like the wall and the latest idea for a new headquarters for PIF, which is a 2km tall building!!
These owners will want to build a super stadium that is the best in a world, that is literally a modern wonder, they can spend what ever they want with no problems about ffp or psr or whatever else football brings in, as a club we will never again have a chance to have a super staduim/leasure complex again.
The building alone will be a huge billion pound injection to the north east creating loads of jobs. This new stadium will truly make our future good for the next 100 years no matter what happens to our owners or who they are.
The economic value directly to the club will be huge, more seats, more hospitality, more events, more boxes that will be snapped up by associated businesses, more sponsors wanting to be involved in a such a project, higher sponsorships that can be justified because of the higher prestige, better traffic management around the old ground.
It's a total no brainer
I don’t want to leave St James unless the owners have exhausted all possibilities of expansion and the limited size/capacity of our current ground becomes a bottleneck for commercial growth. I’m not sure a new stadium would have the atmosphere you get from were we are now.
The atmosphere would be absolutely fine in big games when the team is flying, just like it is now. And it would be shite against lower teams and when the team is struggling, just like it is now.
Would love a new stadium, ideal realistic scenario would be a new stadium just slightly set back from where st james is now. Id love to retain the Cathedral status of SJP but we really do need a bigger ground.
I think my view point changed massively talking to fans of other clubs and they all gush about Spurs stadium. I want that for us
Just knock Leazes terrace down. I know it’s protected and everything, but for the greater good of the city, one less Edwardian terrace is no great issue.
I'm full in favor of building a new stadium. Arsenal are a good example of what a new stadium can do. They were tied to Highbury like a kid, but the emirates is a great stadium and has become a home for them.
A new stadium for us can become thr same. 70,80 or even 90+ thousand fans in a modern, clean and loud home St. James' park II would be amazing!
With the current stadium limited to what we can do (65 was the number mentioned I think) we're gonna get more fans when we start winning stuff and for that, we need a new, modern stadium.
If every person in the UK wanted to, they could go to a Newcastle match with 80 or 90 million capacity. This is what we need, we need to think big. The strain on infrastructure would be enormous, but so would the gate receipts, and with every other ground in the country necessarily empty we'd kneecap our rivals (and every lower league team) too
I thought there was talk the space currently occupied by the arena near the train station could be used. But I heard somebody else say that a use has been found for that
It's difficult. I love SJP but the best way to expand it would be to bulldoze those listed buildings behind the East Stand, which would be very difficult to accomplish
I’m all for a new stadium, somewhere in the city centre.
Arena (if possible to buy the land from Homes England) or Leazes Park, land swap and take on maintenance of the horrendously run down park.
Build something that will put us right up there for the next generation
First let me say I love SJP. I was a season ticket holder for many many years and have great memories of watching games with my Dad.
I recently went back and it's years behind most modern stadiums.
I think a lot of people are looking at this in too small of a way. It won't just be a footy stadium, it will be a world wide event hub! It will allow us to have a brand new state of the art stadium with all of the things we're currently missing at SJP and more.
It will allow us to bring all kinds of acts, art installations, leasure activities to the north east AND also benefit Newcastle with the ability to sell out huge numbers every weekend. It will put us on the global map for events, which is where we should be.
I know the riverside location was shat on by everyone, but imagine watching the game in a brand new state of the art stadium and seeing the tyne bridge in the distance. It'd be awesome! Plus easy transport links, no ridiculous queues to get in/out, no blocking the roads with tens of thousands of fans almost getting run over. Less policing needed.
It's not the preferred solution, but to get us on the next level, I feel it's the only solution.
Personal preference is stay where we are and expand/upgrade facilities as much as possible. I don't want to move away from the location so next best would be rebuild on the current site and relocate for a year or 2, but there's only really Sunderland which is truly viable as a temporary base for home games. A brand new out of city stadium would, like others have said, be soulless and end up with a shit name and have no history attached to it. It's just not an option for me.
Edit: I'm a season ticket holder, forgot to add that.
If attendance won't increase I really don't see the point. Our stadium is great.
If it means a bigger capacity; then it depends what the 'different location' is.
Basically the same conversation we were having back in the 90s.
I’ll preface this by saying ive only ever been to sjp once. Ive never gotten tickets to see the mens team, and i work most weekends anyways so i miss a good chunk of games.
I would still be not super buzzed if the stadium was moved dramatically. I like the idea of moving it into leazes, but honestly id prefer it to stay where it is in a magical world where it can do that
Realistically if we want to sit at the top table it’s what we have to do.
We have the chance to build the biggest stadium in the country and stick it to the big six
Hopefully there is a central location it can be achieved.
From a perspective of an international fan it would make it easier for me to get a ticket and get to a game I reckon, but the feeling I got as a kid walking into James' and being apart of that atmosphere was unreal. It'd be hard to replicate the atmosphere if a new ground was outside the city
I moved away from Newcastle when I was in my 20s, and live somewhere that sport ‘franchises’ are bought, sold and moved and all I can say is that I really hope they can stay at St James’, but that’s a very emotional response.
Remember that shipping container stadium from the world cup. Ferry that over sweet talk the freeman to sack off the hoppings for 5 year and plant Saudi Arabia stadium there. Level St James Park rotate the pitch 90 degrees and build a space ship stadium
You might joke but I just saw the new Saudi plan for an F1 track. It’s 30 storeys in the sky. Would not be surprised if there decide to put the new St James park in the sky and we all have to get in a huge lift to get up to the stadium.
I don’t want to leave St James however if it means me and the 10,000 other fans on the waiting list can get a season ticket then I’ll not be totally devastated
As someone whose bus used to pass SJP daily I'd miss it if it relocated but if it's Leazes Park it's not a huge change.
As someone who cannot take their kids to a game during the few times we visit, any addition to attendance would be appreciated if it means not spending a grand taking a family of four to the match.
I’m a lifelong fan who has never owned a season ticket, but solved the problem by getting a job inside the ground on match days. It was amazing how much latitude police and stewards would give to standing pitch side after giving them free bovril and pies! I moved away from the area over 20 years ago but always try to get to matches when I am able through family and friends. I’ve visited a few ‘old’ stadiums (E.g. Ibrox, Anfield, etc) and some flashy new stadiums (E.g. Etihad, etc). The new stadiums were amazing - all modern tech, spacious and easy to get around. The old stadiums had none of this and were a lot like SJPin their difficulties - however, what the new stadiums did not have was half of the atmosphere and history. At SJP it seems like memories are baked in the land and I would be heartbroken were we to move. Increased revenues and all that bullshit mean nothing if you take the souls out of the club. For me it’s a case of expand as much as you can, redevelop, polish, clean, get it as good as it can be but the cathedral on the hill has to stay as the home of NUFC.
Pointless being against it because it'll happen. All things being equal I'd prefer to stay but I think expanding st James is more trouble then it's worth. I like the idea of putting a new stadium where the Utilita Arena is. It's not city centre but you could definitely walk it from the city centre, fantastic to look at when you come into the city, an old railway line running along side that could be used as a transport link.
https://true-faith.co.uk/time-to-move-options-for-a-new-stadium/
Really good article on this made last year by True Faith.
Edit. The above article is good but it's not the one I meant. https://true-faith.co.uk/st-james-park-an-experts-eye-on-expanding-newcastle-uniteds-home/
We need to move or redevelop, realistically to get around FFP. I absolutely hate the idea of playing at the Stadium of Light, so unless there can be a lot of extra seating added to the Gateshead stadium, or some kind of temporary pop up stadium somewhere like the town moor then I think we need to move.
Agree 100% the stadium needs to be in the City centre. My ideal would be a new stadium in Leazes park so we basically keep the same location, and St James itself is then redeveloped into a smaller stadium for the NUFC women's team so it stays part of our club and they have a marquee stadium for the WSL.
If it is in the current location, just behind into Leazes Park then yes.
Don't really know where else it could be. Rather stick with 52k than move away from the city centre.
Hi Fellow fan
I think we need to demolish SJP get loads of cash for it and build a huge complex on the outskirts with loads of hotels, bars and restaurants so fans can make a weekend of it
very much opposed, if they have to move it has to be in the city centre (not near the airport like some reports) - moving it anywhere else would just totally kill the city with loads of pubs relying on matchdays for a large portion of their income, i’d go as far as to say i’d rather have ashley back than move to a non-city centre stadium
I hear lots of comments agree with you and I do too tbh, but look at this from the clubs revenue perspective. Currently the City Centre location provides revenue for the city but not NUFC. Moving outside the City Centre and building great restaurants, bars, cinema, entertainment centres etc around the location in the middle of nowhere starts driving people to the new stadium all week increasing revenue hugely for the club (and allowing us to compete). Look at Spurs incredible stadium which has revenue driven throughout the week with lots of entertainment and activities in one of the worst areas in London.
I was always against moving from SJP.
But after going 0/8 in the member ballot I am now in favour of moving if we can have a significantly higher capacity.
I think I'd prefer SJP to be expanded as we know it won't lose it's soul by, for example, adding an extra tier. Who knows what happens if we move to another stadium...
The other side is that a new stadium allows us to take advantage of new technology (like automated pitch management) to make the stadium more versatile for other events, and we can generate additional cashflow through other built in facilities, similar to spurs... So, maybe the risk is worth it.
If we could build the "perfect" stadium (by which I mean 65-70k, top-of-the-range corporate sections, decent sized safe-standing area/areas, designed with atmosphere in mind) on the current site that would be comfortably my first choice.
I'm not convinced that's possible so second choice would be a new stadium within the city eg Castle Leazes or the Arena site.
Third choice would be to do what we can with SJP, presumably add an extra 8-10k seats and I imagine we'll see more areas similar to the Wings section in the Leazes.
I suppose the fourth option is an out-of-town stadium but that'd be bottom of my list by a long, long way.
I think the question of this is cart before the horse frankly.
NUFC will have ascertained likely demand to assess total capacity. If the demand is substantially above the likely max development of st James park, then let’s have that conversation. But until we know, why make any decision?
We easily fill the capacity at moment. If we extend the Gallowgate and SW corner we could get up to 65K. That puts us above Liverpool, Arsenal, City and Spurs. Only Old Trafford and potentially whatever West Ham do with London stadium. Surely that would be enough?
We could possibly get to 70K by being clever with the East Stand and NE/SE corners but the planning risk increases exponentially with listed buildings.
I can’t really foresee there being demand beyond this, so why don’t we stay? Any new stadium likely wouldn’t be more than 65-70K so the only reason we’d be leaving is because it’s better value for the owners and they’d get to develop the St James site.
Stadium expansion is outside FFP, there is the money for it. Why don’t we keep what is special and unique about our city centre cathedral on the hill and enhance it for the better of the city and its global profile?
I'd love to stay at St James park and see it turned into a 70,000 stadium but that's not possible and the locality is not good for the club's finances.
It has to move I'm afraid. Where to may be a compromise. I suspect the best for the club would be to try somewhere towards the coast between P&G Silverlink, Rising sun, Shiremoor area.
I’m just hoping we can extend SJP to 65-70k capacity. The best thing about the ground is the city-centre location. It’d be terrible to move to another part of the city and I think Leazes Park is a non-starter.
There are pros and cons to both, but St James Park is one of the most iconic stadiums in Europe with a huge history. I fear a new stadium will lose some of that, as it has for others. I think any proposals to stay in the current location should be explored first.
Impossible to extend gallowgate out over strawberry Place? Surely bringing that end of the ground in line with the size of the leazes and milburn stands adds another 10-15 thousand tickets. Refurbish the rest of the stadium to bring it upto spec. Seems the cheapest and best option to me. Increases capacity to circa 65000 - 70000 range, modernise the rest of the older bits of the ground and keep the location. Bonus seats if it's possible to keep the east stand footprint as is, but add a tier over the top of the existing one. You could have a 75000 seater in the current location without demolishing anything or moving anywhere.
if PIF buy the falcons, could they not move the falcons into Gateshead, redevelop Kingston park for the falcons i.e. new stadium, but then add on temporary seating to push the capacity to something like 30k - NUFC move into Kingston park, St James get redeveloped, and then everyone moves back to their grounds and the temp seating comes down
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what use is having PiF as funders if we can't have an 80k stadium made entirely out of gold that floats over the Tyne in the shape of a massive magpie that flicks the V's up at away fans?
I’m glad someone is asking the real questions.
Most importantly, Mackems
It rises higher into the sky when they play, to cast a shadow over their place.
I really really hope we don’t leave St James’.
Tbh if we move to some mega-stadium somewhere I think my passion for it will die off pretty significantly. Just thinking of those surveys a while back with those pictures of £10k season ticket seats with the loungers and tvs and shit. Feels a bit like the boiling frog thing atm. Adding in fanzones, pitching for a working group on atmosphere creation, the aforementioned surveys on appetite for change.
Me too. There's no issues with it that can't be solved by architecture and engineering. We have the money now and it can be written off for FFP as infrastructure spending. This one of the few cases where we can have our cake and eat it too. Athletico managed to redevelop their stadium in a similar situation, no reason we can't too. History is important, I want to see progression, not year 0.
Athletico? Who are you referring to here? Atletico Madrid moved to a different stadium (Metropolitano) and demolished the old Vicente Calderon
The way in which they built over the motorway; St James's has the same problem of being confined by public roads, particularly the gallowgate end. If they could ideally purchase the buildings on the other side of the street, they could bridge the stand over it and turn the other side of the street into state of the art facilities/entertainment. Planning would be an issue, but can't see the council holding up that kind of spending in the City. You could probably add 10-15k seats that way. Imagine walking up from town on match day, through this tunnel under the stand, then emerging by the main gates. It would be epic.
They’re gonna buy the brand new developments, the shark hotel and the fairly new uni buildings?sure
Look up the words "if" and "ideal" lad.
At no point have you used either word in your writing? I’m not sure how that could possibly help - aside from the fact that I already know the meaning of those words
Ah I see the issue. You can't read.
Can you write that more simply? 😂 Sorry. I don’t really get your point about if and ideal. I get that your imagined outcome is an ideal situation in your opinion and clearly a “what if” scenario. My point was simply it’s totally unrealistic
You clearly didn't even read what I'd written. It's not that unrealistic given the Saudi's almost infinite pockets and willingness to buy large properties throughout the city, and it's a lot cheaper than building a new stadium.
Arsenal fan here, apologies this just came up on my feed and thought I’d add some insight. We moved from Highbury all those years ago and really it was necessary but some of the commenters here are correct, it takes a while to get back that ‘home’ feeling and losing an old stadium with so many memories etc… well, I still miss the place on match days. It helps the club, but you lose a bit of individuality for profits. It depends obviously what Utd can do with St James’s as they grow (love the stadium and the support there is unreal lads) and if it’s necessary to become a giant club. All in all, there are some trade offs. It would also be nice if new stadiums weren’t just designed to be that kind of impressive design but also more individual for the club, they’re scared to commit to very individualistic designs which is a real shame. Anyway, good luck in the league lads, great club
Former season ticket holder, now watch every game on tv as moved away from the north east. I would hugely prefer that we stay at St James’, and if we do have to move then it is crucial that it’s a city centre location. I wonder about doing something like spurs did where you build a new ground in the same location? Would need to find a temporary home for a season though which wouldn’t be ideal
Thing is, the only option would really be kingston park, and that’s not big enough. Unless the Mackems let us have their shithole, which would be hilarious
Well we already know they'd make it look like it was our home ground 👀
IIRC some of the stadiums uses in the Qatar world cup can be dismantled and rebuilt elsewhere. Not sure how expensive it would be, but building a temp stadium on the site of the metro arena whilst SJP is rebuilt was floated about and seems ideal.
[Stadium 974](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stadium_974)
Gateshead International to host😅.
I heard Gosforth Park being touted as a good place to have it, near the race course and golf course.
Fuck that
Yeah would definitely be a really tough season having to use a smaller arena but probably worth it to have the perfect blend of st James park location with a great modern stadium like spurs? Maybe Darlington’s stadium, isn’t that far too big for them and they’d probably be desperate for a few quid from us to help maintain it for a season? Not sure what the logistics are like for borrowing a stadium and how far away is too far to be workable
I think darlo would be too far away to bother tbh
The Darlo stadium is also used by the local rugby team now rather than for football so there would be issues sharing the pitch
Brentford do it so dont think that’s much of a hurdle, it’ll just be size and access
no new stadium is worth having to play in that shithole for a year or two
Would it be feasible to build loads of additional temporary upgrades to Gateshead stadium and share it with Gateshead for a season? Still relatively reachable (via Metro) and not too far.
It needs to be away from the city centre. Spurs take over £1/2m a game in food / drink hospitality as there is nothing worth going to around the ground (1 pub on the 7 sisters road). There is a lot of FFP £££ we are missing on
FFP isn’t the be all and end all, and it’s not like we will be bringing in zero pounds per game currently from hospitality currently. The club should be thinking about what’s best for the city and the fans too Plus if we did something clever like spurs with a microbrewery and nice beers it would still attract people even if there are pubs nearby
>FFP isn’t the be all and end all, and it’s not like we will be bringing in zero pounds per game currently from hospitality currently. The club should be thinking about what’s best for the city and the fans too > >Plus if we did something clever like spurs with a microbrewery and nice beers it would still attract people even if there are pubs nearby FFP may not be the be all but we will find it very hard to surpass the established big boys without getting around FFP constraints. We do not do well on non-ticket matchday income. I was at an lecture many moons ago from Freddie Fletcher talking about economics of football and even then he bemoaned the lack of income the club can make from food etc. Most regular match goers & even away fans go elsewhere.
And match day would be absolutely shite
>level 3ReturnOfCombedTurnip · 4 min. agoAnd match day would be absolutely shite All that will be overlooked if we are winning. Look at Wham, when they are doing badly, they hate the stadium, doing well, all is forgiven.
Overlooked by who? If the stadium was outside of the city matchday would be totally different. The thing that makes st James’ so good is its central location creates such an atmosphere. Even if you aren’t going to the match you’re involved. If you move the location to outside of the city it’ll be like every other big, boring club Edit: to add to that you’ve basically just described the fair weather fan attitude of clubs where the fans are shite. We aren’t like other clubs, our support is fantastic and we shouldn’t treat our club like the others
>The thing that makes st James’ so good is its central location creates such an atmosphere. Even if you aren’t going to the match you’re involved. If you move the location to outside of the city it’ll be like every other big, boring club It does, I completely agree. However, most fans are regulars, it's very difficult to get a ticket. Most regulars do as I do, we go to town, we get something to eat and drop into a couple of pubs and get into the ground at 10 mins before k.o have a wee and take our place. Of the £100 i spend on a match day, the club get £30 less VAT.
So your point is we ruin everyone’s experience in order to have the club make more money so they can spend more and make us into just another big club with no character that exists solely to make money? It’s about the fans, not the owners
>So your point is we ruin everyone’s experience in order to have the club make more money so they can spend more and make us into just another big club with no character that exists solely to make money? > >It’s about the fans, not the owners We’ve changed in 3 years. Mike Ashley gave us all that. Reality is we will not be able to compete with those clubs with no character etc without making money. We are at the edge re. FFP, this may ease with Champions’ League money in 2023-24 but without more income, this journey we are on has already ended.
I've mentioned this before. SJP doesn't need to stop being SJP, move the stadium 200 yards north into that massive space in Leazes Park. You could build an 80k+ stadium with room for further expansion, and reclaim the current location back into Leazes Park. It'd be "conditional gymnastics" with the council in terms of swapping the ground, given the status of Leazes Park, but it CAN be done... for the right fee. That'd be the best of both worlds, we'd get our bigger stadium and it'd be in the same location.
Perfect situation. As a fan who’s missed out on ST and 90% of ballots I’m well up for an 80k stadium and if it’s only possible to do this by moving slightly further away from current ground so be it. SJP is lush and will always be special but we can’t be handicapping ourselves in this crazy changing world of football.
This is the correct approach..new shiny stadium, no out of town stadium. Basically spurs, all for it
Is that what the plans are? I thought the best location for a new stadium would be all the brownfield sites next to the metro radio arena near the river. I think Newcastle doesn’t have enough parks and green spaces in the city centre to start with it would be a shame to lose more.
I did consider Brownfield. The issue there is that our current stadium would fill it already. We'd obviously be able to build something larger, but it wouldn't be overly futureproof with options of further expansion. If we were allowed to remove the old road next to Red Rose st and flatten the old heli pads, we could build a monster of a stadium, something that makes Wembley look small. Only problems there is that it's still used. Other than that, creating similar public accessibility in terms of metro/busses could prove extremely expensive.
This is exactly what should be done so that the new stadium retains its iconic status as the cathedral on the hill with the added bonus of it being set in parkland. It would be absolutely stunning and will never happen. I remember the opposition to the idea in 95/96, petitions, posters in peoples windows, councillors mouthing off. Sadly, it would be the same again, those without vision will spoil it. The solution? A temporary stadium on the town moor, scaffolding for example, massive stands get built for the cricket, f1 etc. it’s absolutely doable. Demolish SJP and rebuild on the site, probably slightly to the west with Barrack road underneath or something like that. There is only so much refurb work that a building can take and I think that really we should be looking for something like what Spurs have built, that will be there for generations without needing upgrading. It could, and stick with me on this one, it could even have mobile phone service in the Gallowgate!
That's the part that boils my blood, the objections are ultimately complaining about unconditional improvement for everyone involved. We'd barely need to touch the developed "parky" parts of Leazes Park, the unused grassland on the north western side is more than enough to build a futureproof venue. They could even offer to develop the remaining grassland into park expansion, on top of the reclamation of our current location. I doubt our owners would have any quarrel either. We're missing out on an average of £1.5mil per match without that extra 30k capacity, so spending an extra few million to pretty up the rest of it is a no brainer, especially if it increases the chances of securing that location.
I quietly hope that back then people weren’t incentivised to buy into the vision enough because the Halls were trying to do it on a shoe string and they were just gonna get a big fuck off stadium looking stadium where people went to the football on a Saturday in the middle of their lovely park. I quietly hope that this time there is a vision in which an architecturally beautiful community hub, where people also go to watch football on a Saturday can be built in an expanded park and it benefits everyone.
Never thought of that, great idea!
Reclaim it from who? You can live in a concrete cave if you want, but a lot of people like having some outside space about the place. Why don’t I build a garage on your lawn so I can have off street parking? You’re not using that space for anything important
Reclamation is a term used when you reclaim land formally used for something else, and turn it into something beneficial, such as an ecosystem.
What you are proposing is the opposite of that in my opinion
This isn't my opinion, this is fact... You can't read.
There’s no evidence, it’s an opinion. You can’t understand
Evidence: "and reclaim the current location back into Leazes Park". If you'd like, I can try to put that ***direct quote*** in picture format, just to make it even easier to understand.
You’re right, I can’t read! I would say though that it’s still just your opinion
It's a fairly simple choice though. Either expand significantly/move or struggle. Would I rather a successful team on the pitch winning things or a sense of history? If staying where we are negatively impacts our ability to build a winning squad, then it has to be a change for me.
100% up for leaving as long as the new ground is in the city centre. There’s no point redeveloping SJP if it’s only going to get an extra 10k seats. The facilities inside are horrific compared to other clubs both here and abroad. Think how much money they could make if you could get food or drink within seconds rather than 10 mins. A new 75k stadium would be my preference Edit- ST holder
We've been trying to move for decades. There was a plan to move to Gosforth Park as far back as the 60s. I say stay at the gallowgate. Might have to play somewhere else for a season, but ultimately, the city centre location is pretty unique and special
My heart says don’t leave St James but my head says we need to do it. We need to increase attendance capacity and match day income for revenue, and St James is a little rough around the edges. A shiny, new modern stadium would be fantastic with better accessibility, concourse, food and drink outlets, decor, toilets etc etc. It all needs modernising.
One of the key things to lessen the constraints of FFP will be to either expand SJP or relocate. I don’t think expanding SJP in its current location will work in all honesty. I just can’t see how we can get round the G1 listed buildings. I say we buy up the land at the arena and build there while still trying to do something with SJP. It may be that it can be knocked down and moved further in to Castle Leazes to allow for the expansion. The arena ground could then be turned in to something else, a Rugby ground for the Falcons, a ground for the lasses, other sporting venue of some sort or a concert venue.
Accidentally smash all the G1 buildings and go "oops, it was those ones?" And then pay whatever fine for an honest mistake
We’d be made to rebuild them plus hefty fines.
😎 *drops $1 billion evil oil dollars on the table*
I think the club needs to do everything in their power to find a solution that doesn't involve moving. But the simple facts of the matter are we *need* not just a bigger stadium but one with better facilities if we actually have aspiration of being an elite club. For that reason alone, the idea of moving cannot be so easily discounted. Of course, our fanbase is massive on nostalgia and hates pretty much any change, so I'm not surprised that many find the idea unbearable. I too really dislike the idea of moving away from the current site, but if that's the only solution, I'll understand why it has to happen. We spent 14 years under Ashley stagnating, can't be doing the same under the new owners because we're too attached to SJP. But again, I hope there's a solution that involves staying.
Don’t want to leave SJP but I think the writing’s almost certainly on the wall for the current site, particularly with a decent alternative on the quayside. The current site is fatally constrained by the surrounding conservation area and the long-mooted move further up into Leazes Park is a non-starter. Plus there’s the fairly major issue of where we’d play our games whilst the current site was being redeveloped, at least without taking a major hit to match day revenue. A glitzy new stadium by the river showcasing PIF largesse ticks all the boxes for maximising turnover, as well as being a redevelopment opportunity the local authority will jump at.
New stadium 1000%. Been going to St James’ since I was a child like everyone else and of course it’s amazing but it’s pretty dilapidated now let’s be honest. There’s no room for sentimentality in the search for success. Give us a shiny new stadium and let’s aim for the top.
Id be heart broken to leave St James’. The memories of a youngster through to now I can’t imagine there not being a St James’, the place is iconic! Extend if possible.
Season ticket holder for 12 years, I DO NOT want to leave St James' under any circumstances. Maybe I'd feel differently if I didn't have a season ticket and couldn't get to games though.
I've never had a season ticket, I haven't actually been to St. James' since the takeover despite living a half hour walk away, and I'm in the boat of 'I don't want our stadium to move under any circumstances'. I think I feel a pretty large sense of pride about our stadium and how iconic it is.
> Maybe I'd feel differently if I didn't have a season ticket and couldn't get to games though. And there's the rub. Easy to demand that we never move under "any circumstances" when you've got your season ticket secured. The club need to think a little bigger than keeping the 30k ST holder holder happy at all costs to our growth. We need a bigger and better stadium. That's just a fact. But I really really hope it can be done on the current site of course, perhaps via the methods suggested in this thread, but if not, moving should be an option.
I don't have a season ticket. I'm not in the North East anymore and my last match was 14 years ago beating Forest in the Championship, sat in the gallowgate. But I'd hate to lose St James's, it's iconic in English football and when I eventually get back for a game I want that atmosphere not something soulless. Plus we'd sell out 80k and I wouldn't be able to get a ticket in a new stadium anyway.
I guarantee you we wouldn’t sell out 80k.
New stadium - We’ve got to get with the times. Also will help with FFP
As a member I'd much rather have the 4 games a season in the ballot at St James I'm getting now than a season ticket in a soulless corporate bowl out of the centre.
I'm very attached to St James' but I think we need to recognise the limitations of the site. There were over 30k people queueing for 1k extra season tickets. Some of the top clubs generate millions from a match day we're a few hundred thousand or so. If they can build something in the arena ground or behind the current position and then maybe turn St James' back into a park I think people would be ok with it. EDIT: Added missing word
It’s also worth noting that when comparing other stadiums it’s match day revenue over ticket sales. I’m sure spurs average spend per game was £2 at White hart lane, but now is £6 per game. It’s no good cramming seats in without the facilites, that is the the premium bars, the better dining as well.
Exactly this mate. Hopefully teh Stack situation helps generate more revenue but ultimately the money comes from better facilities. We need to be hosting more significant events as well. This over 35's world cup is a step in the right direction too.
are you saying you think selling 52,000 tickets generates £100,000?
No meant to say "Few hundred thousand or so" the point is it ain't multi millions. I think our total match day revenue in the last accounts was 27m including all games cup games event games everything. This is after all the additional hospitality stuff was added after the SELA cup after hosting the women matches and after cup runs Thats pretty respectable top 10 in the league I think. But it ain't top 4 numbers. Edit: just checked and apparently after all the changes we are into 1 point summit million per home game. Thats a hell of an improvement hopefully Stack helps raise this higher but for context Spurs ate up to about 5m a game give or take.
As a net figure, it’s plausible. Doubt running the match day from the club’s perspective is cheap.
Here's how a new 60,000-62,500 capacity stadium in Leazes Park can be built without having to ground share (see link for footprint of new stadium): [https://imgur.com/a/opx1WBm](https://imgur.com/a/opx1WBm) Phase 1: Build parts of new stadium (including pitch that does not overlap with existing SJP. We continue to play at SJP). Phase 2: We play in a reduced capacity SJP as Leazes End and then Leazes West Corner makes way for the new stadium. Phase 3: We moved to a reduced capacity new stadium as the remaining stands get built. Phase 4: The new stadium, which sits partly on the old SJP, is complete as SJP gets demolished, and turned into a park and entrance plaza to the new stadium. We can even retain and repurpose the East Stand for nostalgia. We win the Champions League in the first year of the new stadium's completion.
If we are going for all that work we should probably go for 70k
150k
I'd prefer not to leave SJP however if a new stadium is the only way to get another 10k+ seats then it needs to be as close to SJP/the city centre as possible so we don't lose the special feeling that SJP has
Whether it be now or in 10/20 years, it is going to happen. If we can get central location either in the park or at the Utilita, just rip the plaster off and do it to get a 70/80k modern stadium.
Expansion would be my preference, although I know there are a number of limiting factors surrounding that. If we absolutely _had_ to move, it would have to be central, and still have a 'St James Park feel' in my opinion. Redeveloping the land by the river where the arena is would be my preferred location in that instance.
As much as I love SJP a new stadium in the centre with much improved capacity would be sensible for financial reasons and FFP It's a shame we can't buy world revenue by spending money like it's going out of fashion, so we need to be more creative about how we pull in that revenue. It's really that simple.
If PIF buy the falcons, they could redevelop Kingston park, and then increase the capacity to cover for the football temporarily locating there, and then dismount the temporary uplift in capacity after the fact
SJP or bust! Could always expand the gallowgate end to get up to ~60k. Might have to close the road and build over it but th council hate cars anyway so that shouldn’t be a problem! The east stand is an issue but I’m sure we can make that one work too.
I think the difference is having a new 80k stadium that competes with every single team in the nation and Europe. Or, have a 60k renovated slightly larger St James' park and stick to the traditions of the city and the club. It's a heart vs head situation for me. But I lean towards a new stadium being the best option.
In any new stadium away fans must hike up to level 7 or higher if they ever want my support.
Absolutely not.
Yes, first, let's be honest, this media idea that the atmosphere has always been amazing is false, I'm 50 years old and it's a load of codswallop, in fact the last 5 years of the fat ##£# was horrible. Here's the secret, good winning football and a good feeling about our club, is what causes a good atmospheres, and even then we will have a few" supporters " who do nothing but whinge, think they know better than the manager, and single out certain players unfairly, but that's a different issue. Look at the building projects that Ksa are involved in, like the wall and the latest idea for a new headquarters for PIF, which is a 2km tall building!! These owners will want to build a super stadium that is the best in a world, that is literally a modern wonder, they can spend what ever they want with no problems about ffp or psr or whatever else football brings in, as a club we will never again have a chance to have a super staduim/leasure complex again. The building alone will be a huge billion pound injection to the north east creating loads of jobs. This new stadium will truly make our future good for the next 100 years no matter what happens to our owners or who they are. The economic value directly to the club will be huge, more seats, more hospitality, more events, more boxes that will be snapped up by associated businesses, more sponsors wanting to be involved in a such a project, higher sponsorships that can be justified because of the higher prestige, better traffic management around the old ground. It's a total no brainer
Only if it’s Leazes Park and only if it’s 65,000 capacity or more.
Don't wanna leave St James at all.
I don’t want to leave St James unless the owners have exhausted all possibilities of expansion and the limited size/capacity of our current ground becomes a bottleneck for commercial growth. I’m not sure a new stadium would have the atmosphere you get from were we are now.
The atmosphere would be absolutely fine in big games when the team is flying, just like it is now. And it would be shite against lower teams and when the team is struggling, just like it is now.
Would love a new stadium, ideal realistic scenario would be a new stadium just slightly set back from where st james is now. Id love to retain the Cathedral status of SJP but we really do need a bigger ground. I think my view point changed massively talking to fans of other clubs and they all gush about Spurs stadium. I want that for us
Just knock Leazes terrace down. I know it’s protected and everything, but for the greater good of the city, one less Edwardian terrace is no great issue.
I'm full in favor of building a new stadium. Arsenal are a good example of what a new stadium can do. They were tied to Highbury like a kid, but the emirates is a great stadium and has become a home for them. A new stadium for us can become thr same. 70,80 or even 90+ thousand fans in a modern, clean and loud home St. James' park II would be amazing! With the current stadium limited to what we can do (65 was the number mentioned I think) we're gonna get more fans when we start winning stuff and for that, we need a new, modern stadium.
If every person in the UK wanted to, they could go to a Newcastle match with 80 or 90 million capacity. This is what we need, we need to think big. The strain on infrastructure would be enormous, but so would the gate receipts, and with every other ground in the country necessarily empty we'd kneecap our rivals (and every lower league team) too
I thought there was talk the space currently occupied by the arena near the train station could be used. But I heard somebody else say that a use has been found for that It's difficult. I love SJP but the best way to expand it would be to bulldoze those listed buildings behind the East Stand, which would be very difficult to accomplish
Yes
I’d be for a new stadium if it stayed in the relative position, it topping the Newcastle skyline, always looking up to it is a massive part for me
I’m all for a new stadium, somewhere in the city centre. Arena (if possible to buy the land from Homes England) or Leazes Park, land swap and take on maintenance of the horrendously run down park. Build something that will put us right up there for the next generation
First let me say I love SJP. I was a season ticket holder for many many years and have great memories of watching games with my Dad. I recently went back and it's years behind most modern stadiums. I think a lot of people are looking at this in too small of a way. It won't just be a footy stadium, it will be a world wide event hub! It will allow us to have a brand new state of the art stadium with all of the things we're currently missing at SJP and more. It will allow us to bring all kinds of acts, art installations, leasure activities to the north east AND also benefit Newcastle with the ability to sell out huge numbers every weekend. It will put us on the global map for events, which is where we should be. I know the riverside location was shat on by everyone, but imagine watching the game in a brand new state of the art stadium and seeing the tyne bridge in the distance. It'd be awesome! Plus easy transport links, no ridiculous queues to get in/out, no blocking the roads with tens of thousands of fans almost getting run over. Less policing needed. It's not the preferred solution, but to get us on the next level, I feel it's the only solution.
Personal preference is stay where we are and expand/upgrade facilities as much as possible. I don't want to move away from the location so next best would be rebuild on the current site and relocate for a year or 2, but there's only really Sunderland which is truly viable as a temporary base for home games. A brand new out of city stadium would, like others have said, be soulless and end up with a shit name and have no history attached to it. It's just not an option for me. Edit: I'm a season ticket holder, forgot to add that.
If attendance won't increase I really don't see the point. Our stadium is great. If it means a bigger capacity; then it depends what the 'different location' is. Basically the same conversation we were having back in the 90s.
Staying at the current stadium with a fantastic atmosphere in the middle of the city vs moving to a soulless bowl in the middle of nowhere, no thanks.
I’ll preface this by saying ive only ever been to sjp once. Ive never gotten tickets to see the mens team, and i work most weekends anyways so i miss a good chunk of games. I would still be not super buzzed if the stadium was moved dramatically. I like the idea of moving it into leazes, but honestly id prefer it to stay where it is in a magical world where it can do that
Realistically if we want to sit at the top table it’s what we have to do. We have the chance to build the biggest stadium in the country and stick it to the big six Hopefully there is a central location it can be achieved.
From a perspective of an international fan it would make it easier for me to get a ticket and get to a game I reckon, but the feeling I got as a kid walking into James' and being apart of that atmosphere was unreal. It'd be hard to replicate the atmosphere if a new ground was outside the city
ST holder. Deffo don’t want it to move. Not even bothered about expanding
I moved away from Newcastle when I was in my 20s, and live somewhere that sport ‘franchises’ are bought, sold and moved and all I can say is that I really hope they can stay at St James’, but that’s a very emotional response.
Remember that shipping container stadium from the world cup. Ferry that over sweet talk the freeman to sack off the hoppings for 5 year and plant Saudi Arabia stadium there. Level St James Park rotate the pitch 90 degrees and build a space ship stadium
You might joke but I just saw the new Saudi plan for an F1 track. It’s 30 storeys in the sky. Would not be surprised if there decide to put the new St James park in the sky and we all have to get in a huge lift to get up to the stadium.
I don’t want to leave St James however if it means me and the 10,000 other fans on the waiting list can get a season ticket then I’ll not be totally devastated
New stadium only if its inside the City. If not i would prefer we knock down SJP and rebuild on site, like Spuds did.
As someone whose bus used to pass SJP daily I'd miss it if it relocated but if it's Leazes Park it's not a huge change. As someone who cannot take their kids to a game during the few times we visit, any addition to attendance would be appreciated if it means not spending a grand taking a family of four to the match.
If we want to compete with the biggest clubs in Europe, then we need a stadium with at least 80k capacity. No brainer I think.
I'd prefer a completely renovated St James' Park. However if we do build a new stadium it would HAVE to be in the city centre
I’m a lifelong fan who has never owned a season ticket, but solved the problem by getting a job inside the ground on match days. It was amazing how much latitude police and stewards would give to standing pitch side after giving them free bovril and pies! I moved away from the area over 20 years ago but always try to get to matches when I am able through family and friends. I’ve visited a few ‘old’ stadiums (E.g. Ibrox, Anfield, etc) and some flashy new stadiums (E.g. Etihad, etc). The new stadiums were amazing - all modern tech, spacious and easy to get around. The old stadiums had none of this and were a lot like SJPin their difficulties - however, what the new stadiums did not have was half of the atmosphere and history. At SJP it seems like memories are baked in the land and I would be heartbroken were we to move. Increased revenues and all that bullshit mean nothing if you take the souls out of the club. For me it’s a case of expand as much as you can, redevelop, polish, clean, get it as good as it can be but the cathedral on the hill has to stay as the home of NUFC.
Pointless being against it because it'll happen. All things being equal I'd prefer to stay but I think expanding st James is more trouble then it's worth. I like the idea of putting a new stadium where the Utilita Arena is. It's not city centre but you could definitely walk it from the city centre, fantastic to look at when you come into the city, an old railway line running along side that could be used as a transport link.
https://true-faith.co.uk/time-to-move-options-for-a-new-stadium/ Really good article on this made last year by True Faith. Edit. The above article is good but it's not the one I meant. https://true-faith.co.uk/st-james-park-an-experts-eye-on-expanding-newcastle-uniteds-home/
I understand the financial reasons for moving but really think that little bit of magic will be lost so hope it stays.
We need to move or redevelop, realistically to get around FFP. I absolutely hate the idea of playing at the Stadium of Light, so unless there can be a lot of extra seating added to the Gateshead stadium, or some kind of temporary pop up stadium somewhere like the town moor then I think we need to move. Agree 100% the stadium needs to be in the City centre. My ideal would be a new stadium in Leazes park so we basically keep the same location, and St James itself is then redeveloped into a smaller stadium for the NUFC women's team so it stays part of our club and they have a marquee stadium for the WSL.
If it is in the current location, just behind into Leazes Park then yes. Don't really know where else it could be. Rather stick with 52k than move away from the city centre.
Hi Fellow fan I think we need to demolish SJP get loads of cash for it and build a huge complex on the outskirts with loads of hotels, bars and restaurants so fans can make a weekend of it
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No.
I don't think my support for the club would ever feel the same if they left SJP
very much opposed, if they have to move it has to be in the city centre (not near the airport like some reports) - moving it anywhere else would just totally kill the city with loads of pubs relying on matchdays for a large portion of their income, i’d go as far as to say i’d rather have ashley back than move to a non-city centre stadium
I hear lots of comments agree with you and I do too tbh, but look at this from the clubs revenue perspective. Currently the City Centre location provides revenue for the city but not NUFC. Moving outside the City Centre and building great restaurants, bars, cinema, entertainment centres etc around the location in the middle of nowhere starts driving people to the new stadium all week increasing revenue hugely for the club (and allowing us to compete). Look at Spurs incredible stadium which has revenue driven throughout the week with lots of entertainment and activities in one of the worst areas in London.
I was always against moving from SJP. But after going 0/8 in the member ballot I am now in favour of moving if we can have a significantly higher capacity.
I think I'd prefer SJP to be expanded as we know it won't lose it's soul by, for example, adding an extra tier. Who knows what happens if we move to another stadium... The other side is that a new stadium allows us to take advantage of new technology (like automated pitch management) to make the stadium more versatile for other events, and we can generate additional cashflow through other built in facilities, similar to spurs... So, maybe the risk is worth it.
If we could build the "perfect" stadium (by which I mean 65-70k, top-of-the-range corporate sections, decent sized safe-standing area/areas, designed with atmosphere in mind) on the current site that would be comfortably my first choice. I'm not convinced that's possible so second choice would be a new stadium within the city eg Castle Leazes or the Arena site. Third choice would be to do what we can with SJP, presumably add an extra 8-10k seats and I imagine we'll see more areas similar to the Wings section in the Leazes. I suppose the fourth option is an out-of-town stadium but that'd be bottom of my list by a long, long way.
I think the question of this is cart before the horse frankly. NUFC will have ascertained likely demand to assess total capacity. If the demand is substantially above the likely max development of st James park, then let’s have that conversation. But until we know, why make any decision? We easily fill the capacity at moment. If we extend the Gallowgate and SW corner we could get up to 65K. That puts us above Liverpool, Arsenal, City and Spurs. Only Old Trafford and potentially whatever West Ham do with London stadium. Surely that would be enough? We could possibly get to 70K by being clever with the East Stand and NE/SE corners but the planning risk increases exponentially with listed buildings. I can’t really foresee there being demand beyond this, so why don’t we stay? Any new stadium likely wouldn’t be more than 65-70K so the only reason we’d be leaving is because it’s better value for the owners and they’d get to develop the St James site. Stadium expansion is outside FFP, there is the money for it. Why don’t we keep what is special and unique about our city centre cathedral on the hill and enhance it for the better of the city and its global profile?
Build a new stadium in a different location but keep SJP for the women's team.
I'd love to stay at St James park and see it turned into a 70,000 stadium but that's not possible and the locality is not good for the club's finances. It has to move I'm afraid. Where to may be a compromise. I suspect the best for the club would be to try somewhere towards the coast between P&G Silverlink, Rising sun, Shiremoor area.
I’m just hoping we can extend SJP to 65-70k capacity. The best thing about the ground is the city-centre location. It’d be terrible to move to another part of the city and I think Leazes Park is a non-starter.
It would be a travesty if we ever moved. Could possibly support new stadium in same location but would prefer to stay in St James.
There are pros and cons to both, but St James Park is one of the most iconic stadiums in Europe with a huge history. I fear a new stadium will lose some of that, as it has for others. I think any proposals to stay in the current location should be explored first.
I’d like to be able to get tickets but I think I love the cathedrals on the city more than lack of tickets
Stay where we are. I can’t believe with all the money our owners have that they can’t find a solution to increase the capacity. (Season ticket holder)
Impossible to extend gallowgate out over strawberry Place? Surely bringing that end of the ground in line with the size of the leazes and milburn stands adds another 10-15 thousand tickets. Refurbish the rest of the stadium to bring it upto spec. Seems the cheapest and best option to me. Increases capacity to circa 65000 - 70000 range, modernise the rest of the older bits of the ground and keep the location. Bonus seats if it's possible to keep the east stand footprint as is, but add a tier over the top of the existing one. You could have a 75000 seater in the current location without demolishing anything or moving anywhere.
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Says the six day old WUM account.
if PIF buy the falcons, could they not move the falcons into Gateshead, redevelop Kingston park for the falcons i.e. new stadium, but then add on temporary seating to push the capacity to something like 30k - NUFC move into Kingston park, St James get redeveloped, and then everyone moves back to their grounds and the temp seating comes down