New Stadium Capacity (now c.17,800)

[Dave Bond]

I t was a great experience at the ticket sales office this week and if possible it is worth the effort to go there in person. One thing that was clear is that it is unlikely that those who sit near the half way line will be anywhere as near in the new stadium simply because the dugout and premium seats have taken up those places.

 

[hobbsy]

I t was a great experience at the ticket sales office this week and if possible it is worth the effort to go there in person. One thing that was clear is that it is unlikely that those who sit near the half way line will be anywhere as near in the new stadium simply because the dugout and premium seats have taken up those places.

Yes they will have the option of moving to the North Stand.

 

[Banana]

I t was a great experience at the ticket sales office this week and if possible it is worth the effort to go there in person. One thing that was clear is that it is unlikely that those who sit near the half way line will be anywhere as near in the new stadium simply because the dugout and premium seats have taken up those places.

Hence why those that have been sitting on the halfway line for 8 or so years have been prioritised for seats on the halfway line in the North Stand

 

[A406 Bee]

Yes they will have the option of moving to the North Stand.

We have been sitting near the back of Braemar Block D (now B304) halfway inside the half towards Brook Road for a long, long time. The same view wasn't available in the South Stand as the ordinary seats only go back 12 rows, so we were advised at our appointment that to have a similar view at LR we should swap over to the North Stand so that's what we've done, with our 12-person group split over rows 18 & 19 in N124. The people who have sat in front of us for many years have their appointment tomorrow and plan to do the same thing and I think the North will be a mixture of current Braemar Road and New Roaders.

 

[Doovster]

We have been sitting near the back of Braemar Block D (now B304) halfway inside the half towards Brook Road for a long, long time. The same view wasn't available in the South Stand as the ordinary seats only go back 12 rows, so we were advised at our appointment that to have a similar view at LR we should swap over to the North Stand so that's what we've done, with our 12-person group split over rows 18 & 19 in N124. The people who have sat in front of us for many years have their appointment tomorrow and plan to do the same thing and I think the North will be a mixture of current Braemar Road and New Roaders.

I hope you Braemarites are not easily offended!!! lol

 

[Chorlton Bee]

Just a thought re the capacity, did we find some spare seats down the back of the seats?

Tip your waitress, try the chicken

 

[A406 Bee]

I hope you Braemarites are not easily offended!!! lol

 

[Banana]

Just a thought re the capacity, did we find some spare seats down the back of the seats?

Tip your waitress, try the chicken

Although some seats have been added, it would be nowhere near 550.

Suspect that the "capacity" has always been this, but for tactical reasons we put 17,250 in the planning application. Don't ask me why, or what that matters considering we had PP for 20k

 

[8corner]

I hope you Braemarites are not easily offended!!! lol

You may be surprised Doovster. Pleasantries are often dispensed with by many Braemarites (and all Braemarites against certain oppo - who we quite possibly won't be playing next season )

 

[readingbee]

With Loftus Road being 18,439 it’s a shame our new ground will come in just below this number.

I was chatting to another GPGr about this in the pub. We think the increased income of the Rugby and Premium seating gives it a total match income of an equivalent around 24,000 seater stadium. If anyone knows the actual figure it would be good to hear.

 

[hobbsy]

I was chatting to another GPGr about this in the pub. We think the increased income of the Rugby and Premium seating gives it a total match income of an equivalent around 24,000 seater stadium. If anyone knows the actual figure it would be good to hear.

I don't think so, they have kept the GA prices low by offsetting it against the Premium Sales.

 

[readingbee]

I don't think so, they have kept the GA prices low by offsetting it against the Premium Sales.

Thanks for that Hobbsy. I guess someone will be able to give a close figure.

 

[Herbert]

I was chatting to another GPGr about this in the pub. We think the increased income of the Rugby and Premium seating gives it a total match income of an equivalent around 24,000 seater stadium. If anyone knows the actual figure it would be good to hear.

I was having a similarish chat with Bish on Saturday. Weve really thrown our eggs in the basket in the hope of living off prem money. If/when we get there and come back, when the as likely chance of going lower than championship, we could easily be ****ed

 

[Ace Face]

I was having a similarish chat with Bish on Saturday. Weve really thrown our eggs in the basket in the hope of living off prem money. If/when we get there and come back, when the as likely chance of going lower than championship, we could easily be ****ed

Sadly I had no answers.

 

[Hullbee]

Although some seats have been added, it would be nowhere near 550.

Suspect that the "capacity" has always been this, but for tactical reasons we put 17,250 in the planning application. Don't ask me why, or what that matters considering we had PP for 20k

Tactics probably related to transport provisions which have now been confirmed in terms of carry capacity at the station, traffic etc

 

[Brentford 4 Life]

I was having a similarish chat with Bish on Saturday. Weve really thrown our eggs in the basket in the hope of living off prem money. If/when we get there and come back, when the as likely chance of going lower than championship, we could easily be ****ed

The original purpose of the new ground was to be able to generate income 24/7 and not just 23 Saturdays a year. Football has changed and the way people watch matches has changed as well, so we are led to believe, away from corporate boxes etc. But there does seem to be a reliance on reaching the premiership enough times to receive the vast sums that can provide. I have wondered what the plan is if we don’t make the premiership (or don’t reach it regularly enough) or what happens if a European super league reduces the income potential from being in the domestic top flight. I understand we are still capable of generating that 24/7 income, but it will be serviced by third parties, rather than in house, which was the original plan. Has anyone confirmed that (premiership Income aside) LR can make us just as much non match day revenue as prior to the plans being down scaled? (Probably/hopefully have, I just can’t remember).

 

[jlove]

The original purpose of the new ground was to be able to generate income 24/7 and not just 23 Saturdays a year.

The original plan was deemed an impossible dream because, by the time a detailed analysis was undertaken, the number of local hotels and other venues actually doing the same thing made it incredibly competitive plus BFC had no experience whatsoever (apart from the Princess Royal debacle) of running a conference venue, so it would probably need to be outsourced, anyway. The well-documented decision was made to focus BFC and the new stadium on being a sports venue to generated income through rugby (the long-term licence for LI) and for use in football and rugby outside BFC and LI (e.g. the UEFA European Women's Championship and the choice of seating colours to be TV-friendly). In addition, to use our recruitment model to be an income-generator – something the club has an incredible amount of experience in. The target is to be as neutral or profitable as possible financially whatever league we are in; the only reliance on Premier League income is if we are in the PL.

Once the decision was made to focus the stadium on sports, the next question was build-ability. That is why the capacity was reduced – to allow a stadium to be built at reasonable cost in reasonable time. Upper tiers were removed because the cost (and time) of the foundations and build outweighed the benefit of the seats; similarly, any consideration to extend over the rail track (and the monorail).

This still does not prevent the club from using the hospitality facilities designed for premium seating to cater for non-sports events but this will be an income stream over and above the primary focus on sports. Again, it is most likely to be outsourced as there is no experience in managing, manning and catering for such events, meaning that BFC would need to staff up for things that will not be 24/7.

 

[Herbert]

The original purpose of the new ground was to be able to generate income 24/7 and not just 23 Saturdays a year. Football has changed and the way people watch matches has changed as well, so we are led to believe, away from corporate boxes etc. But there does seem to be a reliance on reaching the premiership enough times to receive the vast sums that can provide. I have wondered what the plan is if we don’t make the premiership (or don’t reach it regularly enough) or what happens if a European super league reduces the income potential from being in the domestic top flight. I understand we are still capable of generating that 24/7 income, but it will be serviced by third parties, rather than in house, which was the original plan. Has anyone confirmed that (premiership Income aside) LR can make us just as much non match day revenue as prior to the plans being down scaled? (Probably/hopefully have, I just can’t remember).

Im not seeing the 24/7 income

 

[Sultan]

Im not seeing the 24/7 income

Agree, 24/7 was never a goer. Pie in the sky thinking. No facilities for events on site. No room for a club shop even. Only option would be to have a Pay as you Pray multi-faith room that could be rented out by the hour 24/7.

 

[Herbert]

Sadly I had no answers.

It is a worry to think that. When original plans were to have facilities making money on other days than match days have all been scrapped. And when our cycle comes back round to being below championship level, inevitable some may say, and when Benham is gone, it looks like we arent set up for that.

 

[Herbert]

The original plan was deemed an impossible dream because, by the time a detailed analysis was undertaken, the number of local hotels and other venues actually doing the same thing made it incredibly competitive plus BFC had no experience whatsoever (apart from the Princess Royal debacle) of running a conference venue, so it would probably need to be outsourced, anyway. The well-documented decision was made to focus BFC and the new stadium on being a sports venue to generated income through rugby (the long-term licence for LI) and for use in football and rugby outside BFC and LI (e.g. the UEFA European Women's Championship and the choice of seating colours to be TV-friendly). In addition, to use our recruitment model to be an income-generator – something the club has an incredible amount of experience in. The target is to be as neutral or profitable as possible financially whatever league we are in; the only reliance on Premier League income is if we are in the PL.

Once the decision was made to focus the stadium on sports, the next question was build-ability. That is why the capacity was reduced – to allow a stadium to be built at reasonable cost in reasonable time. Upper tiers were removed because the cost (and time) of the foundations and build outweighed the benefit of the seats; similarly, any consideration to extend over the rail track (and the monorail).

This still does not prevent the club from using the hospitality facilities designed for premium seating to cater for non-sports events but this will be an income stream over and above the primary focus on sports. Again, it is most likely to be outsourced as there is no experience in managing, manning and catering for such events, meaning that BFC would need to staff up for things that will not be 24/7.

How can BFC not get it right if they wanted to host corporate events/functions ? Train up.
Would have thought a brand new football stadium with these facilities would be more attractive than a hotel ?


Non sport events are going to be so few and far between though. And how often are we going to host tournament games. When we do it will be a welcome bonus at the time but not a long term benefit.

 

[Scratchy]

It is a worry to think that. When original plans were to have facilities making money on other days than match days have all been scrapped. And when our cycle comes back round to being below championship level, inevitable some may say, and when Benham is gone, it looks like we arent set up for that.

:shrug:

The time to be concerned about this has long since past.

 

[Herbert]

:shrug:

The time to be concerned about this has long since past.

I dont know. Some of us were raising, for want of a better word, concerns about changes/downgrades as they were announced.

What was the fan group representation like ? Were questions asked or did they happily go along with it ?

To be leaving GP due to lack of facilities,to move to a new ground lacking facilities seems odd

 

[wanderer paul]

I dont know. Some of us were raising, for want of a better word, concerns about changes/downgrades as they were announced.

What was the fan group representation like ? Were questions asked or did they happily go along with it ?

Did you have the extra cash to keep the stadium as originally planned? MB stumped up what? Circa £35m (?) to get this stadium off the ground. Would’ve been more of the original build was kept.

Instead. He’s pumped it into the squad we’re currently watching. I know what I’d prefer.....

It’s been built. It’ll be ready in a couple of months.

Who cares? It’s a stadium to play our football in and it’ll be better than the old girl, GP, for facilities etc.

 

[wanderer paul]

To be leaving GP due to lack of facilities,to move to a new ground lacking facilities seems odd

Lionel Road “lacks facilities”?! What facilities are these?

 

[Banana]

I dont know. Some of us were raising, for want of a better word, concerns about changes/downgrades as they were announced.

What was the fan group representation like ? Were questions asked or did they happily go along with it ?

To be leaving GP due to lack of facilities,to move to a new ground lacking facilities seems odd

It was all available for reading at the time. BIAS, Beesotted and the GPG went to see the new details. The detailed outcome of the GPG meeting was placed on here at the time. THEN we had TWO fans' forums on it. Did YOU attend either of them?

I'm not sure what value you think you are adding to something that already has been built and about to be dusted.

 

[SpiderBee]

Did you have the extra cash to keep the stadium as originally planned? MB stumped up what? Circa £35m (?) to get this stadium off the ground. Would’ve been more of the original build was kept.

Instead. He’s pumped it into the squad we’re currently watching. I know what I’d prefer.....

It’s been built. It’ll be ready in a couple of months.

Who cares? It’s a stadium to play our football in and it’ll be better than the old girl, GP, for facilities etc.

We shall see.

 

[Brentford_till_die]

Lionel Road “lacks facilities”?! What facilities are these?

4 pubs, a club shop and brentford colour seats

 

[Alex]

I dont know. Some of us were raising, for want of a better word, concerns about changes/downgrades as they were announced.

What was the fan group representation like ? Were questions asked or did they happily go along with it ?

To be leaving GP due to lack of facilities,to move to a new ground lacking facilities seems odd

What facilities does it lack as a football/rugby stadium?

 

[wanderer paul]

4 pubs, a club shop and brentford colour seats

Ah.....do we need pubs on every corner? Not really, we can still go to the same pubs as we do now. A club shop? I’m sure one or two will “pop up” here and there. Plus, a retail unit on the ground floor of the flats being built may be available too..... seat colours? Yes, you got me. Red, white and black scattered would’ve been my choice....

 

[Herbert]

Lionel Road “lacks facilities”?! What facilities are these?

I meant more function facilities, and the 7 day income.

Match day Toilet, comfort, access, viewing are an unquestionable upgrade

 

[Herbert]

It was all available for reading at the time. BIAS, Beesotted and the GPG went to see the new details. The detailed outcome of the GPG meeting was placed on here at the time. THEN we had TWO fans' forums on it. Did YOU attend either of them?

I'm not sure what value you think you are adding to something that already has been built and about to be dusted.

Fair enough. Just saying what was brought up in conversation, and the worry of falling below championship level after/if we ever make the prem.

Who knows, when that time comes of being back below champ level, we might have grown as a club and get regular full houses not dependant on away support, and keep up the premium seating attendees.
Then my worries will have been waffle

 

[Mr Tree]

It is a worry to think that. When original plans were to have facilities making money on other days than match days have all been scrapped. And when our cycle comes back round to being below championship level, inevitable some may say, and when Benham is gone, it looks like we arent set up for that.

the new stadium is still far better set up to make more money than GP ever could. and it's worth zooming out and remembering that we were hovering around 50th in the country (at best) and heading in the wrong direction when Benham got involved, and we've now finished in the top 30 five years in a row. no club is entitled to stay where they are, but we've got a much much stronger foundation now than we had.

 

[Herbert]

Did you have the extra cash to keep the stadium as originally planned? MB stumped up what? Circa £35m (?) to get this stadium off the ground. Would’ve been more of the original build was kept.

Instead. He’s pumped it into the squad we’re currently watching. I know what I’d prefer.....

It’s been built. It’ll be ready in a couple of months.

Who cares? It’s a stadium to play our football in and it’ll be better than the old girl, GP, for facilities etc.

All true.

Im just thinking of the future scenario now we hear the ground is to be more reliant on prem money to survive

Proper best times ever footballing side. But i want a club to support when the good times take a stumble, my worry s how we are set up when that/those stumbles come.

 

[wanderer paul]

All true.

Im just thinking of the future scenario now we hear the ground is to be more reliant on prem money to survive

The ground isn’t. The Club is. But then you cut your cloth accordingly. I’m not worried either way.

 

[hanworthbee]

It is a worry to think that. When original plans were to have facilities making money on other days than match days have all been scrapped. And when our cycle comes back round to being below championship level, inevitable some may say, and when Benham is gone, it looks like we arent set up for that.

Why should it come around again ? The gap between league one and the champ is bigger now than it's ever been

 

[Herbert]

the new stadium is still far better set up to make more money than GP ever could. and it's worth zooming out and remembering that we were hovering around 50th in the country (at best) and heading in the wrong direction when Benham got involved, and we've now finished in the top 30 five years in a row. no club is entitled to stay where they are, but we've got a much much stronger foundation now than we had.

100%.

Im well happy how its all run and going. Just thinking scenarios

 

[Herbert]

Why should it come around again ? The gap between league one and the champ is bigger now than it's ever been

Come on . Be realistic, we arent exempt. We are Brentford, we arent an elite club and we will never be fail proof. One day we will have a struggle again, (maybe when we are all long gone ), and how equipped we are for that is my point.

 

[Herbert]

The ground isn’t. The Club is. But then you cut your cloth accordingly. I’m not worried either way.

I do believe of we make the prem we will very shrewd and sensible with how we use the money, no doubting that with our owner.
Im thinking future, no matter how near or distant.

 

[Banana]

Come on . Be realistic, we arent exempt. We are Brentford, we arent an elite club and we will never be fail proof. One day we will have a struggle again, (maybe when we are all long gone ), and how equipped we are for that is my point.

A club with a new stadium is far more attractive as a purchase then a stadium with a dump.

I'm not sure what rattled your cage on this subject - a 2-1 defeat in Luton, whilst sitting in the play-off positions for the Premier League? It really does beggar belief.

 

[Herbert]

A club with a new stadium is far more attractive as a purchase then a stadium with a dump.

I'm not sure what rattled your cage on this subject - a 2-1 defeat in Luton, whilst sitting in the play-off positions for the Premier League? It really does beggar belief.

Haha . Im trying stay away from the luton match thread.
No cage rattled. Im just on about an honest conversation i had, not bashing. Dont think its an unfair thought. Im not being one of these Benham out, dont know what hes doing, hes got nothing to do with funding the ground, hounslow council have funded everything ( someone actually said that to me in the inverness ) etc.

You know my posts are 99.9% in favour and supportive of what the club have done and are doing

 

[jlove]

How can BFC not get it right if they wanted to host corporate events/functions ? Train up.
Would have thought a brand new football stadium with these facilities would be more attractive than a hotel ?

Train who? Players as waiters? The costs would be astronomical and the chances of a return minimal. An hotel is attractive because it has rooms to stay in; it's also cost effective because it has all the catering facilities on site already, so their use can be maximised, and it has a lot of staff doing... catering-type things. Let hotels do hotel things, let a football stadium do sports things.

Non sport events are going to be so few and far between though. And how often are we going to host tournament games. When we do it will be a welcome bonus at the time but not a long term benefit.

There are already enquiries from Bees fans about having birthday and wedding celebration on site, so there should be a steady flow of 'welcome bonuses'.

If we're focused on attracting sports events, then we have all the facilities pre-existing to do that. We're also close to LHR and London, so attractive for overseas teams. Then, we're also close to Wembley and Twickenham, so can benefit from the 'halo effect' of events like women's or U-21 tournaments for the less well supported or more distant countries as we have the latest TV facilities.

 

[GP200]

Agree, 24/7 was never a goer. Pie in the sky thinking. No facilities for events on site. No room for a club shop even. Only option would be to have a Pay as you Pray multi-faith room that could be rented out by the hour 24/7.

..............backpacks allowed??????.............

 

[Billy Hunt]

100%.

Im well happy how its all run and going. Just thinking scenarios

Too much thinking is bad for you. :yes:

 

[Herbert]

Train who? Players as waiters? The costs would be astronomical and the chances of a return minimal. An hotel is attractive because it has rooms to stay in; it's also cost effective because it has all the catering facilities on site already, so their use can be maximised, and it has a lot of staff doing... catering-type things. Let hotels do hotel things, let a football stadium do sports things.
There are already enquiries from Bees fans about having birthday and wedding celebration on site, so there should be a steady flow of 'welcome bonuses'.

If we're focused on attracting sports events, then we have all the facilities pre-existing to do that. We're also close to LHR and London, so attractive for overseas teams. Then, we're also close to Wembley and Twickenham, so can benefit from the 'halo effect' of events like women's or U-21 tournaments for the less well supported or more distant countries as we have the latest TV facilities.

If we havnt got the facilities and its too costly , how are we going to hold wedding/birthday functions ?

 

[jlove]

If we havnt got the facilities and its too costly , how are we going to hold wedding/birthday functions ?

Just the Platinum Plus lounge seats at least 200 and the catering can be outsourced. Premium lounges have built as part of the sports facilities, so can be hired out when not being used for their intended purpose. The costs would be astronomical to have constructed, promote and staff purpose-built conference facilities, which was the original concept.

 

[Herbert]

Just the Platinum Plus lounge seats at least 200 and the catering can be outsourced. Premium lounges have built as part of the sports facilities, so can be hired out when not being used for their intended purpose. The costs would be astronomical to have constructed, promote and staff purpose-built conference facilities, which was the original concept.

Of course. The main stand platinum area has space.

 

[Gee Bee]

If we havnt got the facilities and its too costly , how are we going to hold wedding/birthday functions ?

Like other facilities do perhaps?
Can we also remember that there is a plan that it will be used for other events like Ladies internationals England U21s etc. It’s more useful income wise than GP.

 

[Banana]

If we havnt got the facilities and its too costly , how are we going to hold wedding/birthday functions ?

What facilities doesn't it have? You don't need a club shop to host a wedding.

 

[Brentford 4 Life]

The original plan was deemed an impossible dream because, by the time a detailed analysis was undertaken, the number of local hotels and other venues actually doing the same thing made it incredibly competitive plus BFC had no experience whatsoever (apart from the Princess Royal debacle) of running a conference venue, so it would probably need to be outsourced, anyway. The well-documented decision was made to focus BFC and the new stadium on being a sports venue to generated income through rugby (the long-term licence for LI) and for use in football and rugby outside BFC and LI (e.g. the UEFA European Women's Championship and the choice of seating colours to be TV-friendly). In addition, to use our recruitment model to be an income-generator – something the club has an incredible amount of experience in. The target is to be as neutral or profitable as possible financially whatever league we are in; the only reliance on Premier League income is if we are in the PL.

Once the decision was made to focus the stadium on sports, the next question was build-ability. That is why the capacity was reduced – to allow a stadium to be built at reasonable cost in reasonable time. Upper tiers were removed because the cost (and time) of the foundations and build outweighed the benefit of the seats; similarly, any consideration to extend over the rail track (and the monorail).

This still does not prevent the club from using the hospitality facilities designed for premium seating to cater for non-sports events but this will be an income stream over and above the primary focus on sports. Again, it is most likely to be outsourced as there is no experience in managing, manning and catering for such events, meaning that BFC would need to staff up for things that will not be 24/7.

Cheers, thanks for refreshing my memory.