After the Chelsea Pitch Owners defeat of Roman Abramovich’s plans to buy back Stamford Bridge in order to redevelop the stadium are Chelsea fans considering it a victory or a missed opportunity? And do fans have the right to put sentiment ahead of the progress of their club? The vote on the issue, which required 75% of the vote for Abramovich’s plans to be ratified, fell short by around 15%, showing that the majority were still in favour of selling the land to the oligarch.
The issue of sacrificing history for the sake of the expansion of the club is something that Arsenal fans know only too well. When the plans for Ashburton Grove were proposed they were met with mixed feelings. The abandonment of Highbury, a beautiful art deco stadium steeped in history, was not a happy thought for many fans but the desire to be able to financially compete with their rivals lead many to believe that it was a decision that had to be made.
If you ask the fans now I think that you’ll find that most wished they were still in their old ground. However this could be for a number of reasons: they haven’t won anything since they’ve been at The Emirates, ticket prices are higher than ever and they haven’t yet reaped the financial benefits because they’re still paying off the loans taken to fund the stadium. At the end of the day though it has arguably secured the future of the club.
Arsenal have always been a big club but their form in recent years could have had more lasting effects were they not to have a stadium that would always make them an attractive club to buy, and a club that can guarantee big revenues. I feel that the complaints about the stadium will be long forgotten in twenty years time when the new stadium will have its own history and the club will be more profitable than ever.
However I think that the circumstances for every club are different and the decision to move on is not always going to be right for every club.
Chelsea
The Chelsea Pitch Owners originally bought the club in an effort to safeguard the security of the club, originally from property developers and now from any other potential suitors that may not have the long-term interests of the club at heart. I must say I think it’s an admirable attempt by the CPO to stand up for themselves in the face of one of the most powerful men in football and a man who has guided Chelsea to the most successful period in their history. On the one hand it may seem as though they are preventing the progression of their club by confining themselves to an average sized stadium but on the other hands they appear to be taking the responsible angle.
Should Abramovic decide at any point that he no longer wants to own Chelsea and sells the club then had the CPO given in they would almost definitely regret their actions. There are definite dangers in being owned and run by a singular wealthy individual and in retaining their stake in Stamford Bridge the CPO have retained an element of power amongst the supporters.