Leeds United chairman Paraag Marathe has unveiled plans to expand Elland Road in the near future, aiming to bring the stadium up to scratch with some of the biggest in the country.
Elland Road has long been an iconic footballing arena in England, but as fans will testify to that spend every other week going there, it needs improvements.
Neglect in one form or another, coupled with the increasing demand to see the team play, means an expansion is needed, and the 49ers Enterprises are keen to deliver.
That’s according to the Daily Mail, who reveal extensive plans from the new owners of the club, headed by Paraag Marathe, on how they plan to expand the stadium.
Increased overall capacity and corporate opportunities, improved staffing numbers and overall communication, and overhauling the transport links to LS11 are all on the agenda.
Here, we look at two knock-on effects that this new expansion would have on the club in the coming years…
Revenue spike
Leeds, compared to the majority of their Championship rivals, bring in significantly more matchday revenue with the current capacity.
If Leeds were able to up the capacity to 55,000, as proposed, that’s nearly an extra 20,000 tickets being sold each week, giving the club a huge boost in terms of the income they generate every home game.
The report points out that Leeds bring in £1million from a home game, while they compare that to Tottenham, who rake in £5million – a gap the club aims to bridge with this expansion.
Such a revenue boost has huge implications when it comes to the overall running of the club’s finances, including spending power.
A sense of positive change
Elland Road has long been a symbol of what is great about the club, but also of what has been going wrong for so many years.
Very little has been done to improve the infrastructure of the actual stadium in so long, with minor changes made here and there, but no real tangible benefits coming for the fans who spend so much to support the club.
Seeing an increase in staffing, better travel access, and then just an improved stadium makes the fans feel so much better about the experience.
It’s a promise that the previous regime bandied around almost on a monthly basis about improving Elland Road, but that never came.
While these plans are some way from being put into action, there’s a semblance of more positive chance, given the attention to detail.
