Orient For Olympic Stadium? - 12/11/2006

West Ham and Spurs have expressed interest in moving into the Olympic Stadium after the Games are finished, but now relegation threatened League 1 club Leyton Orient are in the frame. Negotiations are under way with the East London club that would allow the stadium to be reduced to 25,000 seats from 80,000 after 2012, to be retained as the national athletics centre and possibly used for a rugby union team. Orient chairman Barry Hearn said, 'We are the only club interested as far as we aware. I am considering anything for the future sustainable benefit of Leyton Orient. We have spent quite a lot of money on our current home [Brisbane Road], but nothing is for ever and six years is not a lot of time. I would not rule out a move.' Hearn clearly hopes that the 10,000 new homes that will be built as part of the Olympic Village will provide a new reservoir of support, but those who move in who are interested in football are likely to have commitments to other teams. An athletics track isolates supporters from the players and adds little to the atmosphere. It seems curious that such a major facility would end up being used by a League 1 or 2 team.