New Tottenham stadium will see Spurs step out from the shadow of their rivals and compete on an even stage

 
New Dawn: Tottenham's stadium plans
Tottenham Hotspur FC
James Olley8 July 2015

Tottenham moved into White Hart Lane 17 years after a group of school old boys met under a lamppost on the area’s High Road in 1882 to discuss playing football in a more formal capacity. It is fair to say the club are overdue an upgrade.

Spurs have, of course, modernised since then but they have always struggled to keep up with the evolution of their rivals. The Premier League’s colossal television deals have usurped matchday revenue as a club’s principal source of income but the relatively modest 36,000 capacity in N17 has held Tottenham back.

Manchester City and Chelsea fast-tracked their way into the game’s elite with huge financial expenditure that elevated them well above Spurs but the limited matchday income — particularly for Chelsea in relation to their status — left them vulnerable to Uefa’s Financial Fair Play regulations.

Manchester United and Arsenal were able to remain competitive — and free of any Uefa sanction — in this new era of largesse due to a myriad of factors, matchday revenue prominent among them.

Tottenham had neither the rich benefactor nor the stadium income to compete and thus a glass ceiling was created. Last year, Spurs earned £44m in matchday revenue. Compare that to Arsenal’s £100.2m or United’s £108.1m and consider the effect that has on wages and transfer fees.

Tottenham Hotspur FC

There will be some Spurs fans critical of chairman Daniel Levy’s model of buying in young talent only to sell on at a profit and while his immediate footballing ambition could be questioned in that context — think back to the garbled transfer windows of the past (chiefly in January 2012 when Harry Redknapp needed more than Ryan Nelsen and Louis Saha to sustain a title push) — a new stadium was always the long-term aim.

The stadium, which will also host NFL games, will be the biggest club venue in London. After opening their impressive £30 million training complex in 2012, Spurs are finally matching the infrastructure of the game’s elite.

Tottenham's new stadium - In Pictures

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The new ground is scheduled to open in 2018 and last season proved the club have a core of young players capable of maintaining a forward momentum. Mauricio Pochettino’s job is to retain and develop the best of them in the knowledge new riches are on the horizon.

Competition will be fierce, not least in London with West Ham beating Tottenham in the race to a new venue after the Hammers won the battle with Spurs to move into the Olympic Stadium.

Last week, Chelsea unveiled plans for a 60,000-seat venue of their own and should each club’s plan come to fruition, London will house among four of the biggest club stadiums in the country.

Increased capacity will place greater strain on a stressed public transport system but clubs have promised to invest in the infrastructure and the surrounding areas. Spurs believe they will support 3,500 jobs in Tottenham and generate an annual spend of £293m into the local economy, up from £120m.

Schoolboys following the footsteps of those 133 years ago should be well served.

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