There is a sense that the politcal weather is turning against Spurs in their bid to secure the Olympic Stadium. Many Spurs fans, of course, do not want to move to Stratford, although just how many is difficult to assess.
There is a sense that the politcal weather is turning against Spurs in their bid to secure the Olympic Stadium. Many Spurs fans, of course, do not want to move to Stratford, although just how many is difficult to assess.
A BBC poll last week found significant public opposition to Spurs’ plans and strong support for West Ham’s approach which would retain the athletics track. Club insiders at Spurs have become downbeat at how debate about the Olympic Park Legacy Company’s (OPLC) choice has been dominated by its criticised plans for replacing the £500m stadium with one dedicated to football.
One view at Spurs is that even if West Ham became the preferred bidder, the economics of their plan might start to unravel when it was scrutinised more closely. The OPLC could decide to offer conditional backing to West Ham pending further examination of its business plan.
Spurs’ finance director Matthew Collecott argues that the Spurs bid, made in conjunction with US sports and entertainment group AEG, would offer the Treasury a ‘fairly significant’ return in terms of shared revenues which is attractive at a time of fiscal crisis. West Ham’s bid partner, Newham Council, is more cautious. Sir Robin Wales, mayor of Newham, which is lending the project £40m, said, ‘There will be something for the national taxpayer but the loan will have to be paid off first.’
A West Ham fan commented, ‘I have very mixed feelings. Upton Park is special. Something irrevocable will be lost by leaving. And half-empty stadiums are a turn-off. The romantic in me would like to watch football at Upton Park for the rest of my life. But it is also becoming an increasing issue just what a hassle it is getting to the ground. Part of that might be taken care off when these transport improvements for the Olympics actually don’t mean endless engineering works taking the relevant tube lines out regularly, The immediate surrounding area is also not the heart of the support anymore.’ That, of course, applies to most clubs.