Ashburton Grove has a name.

[GoalsFrom50Out]

http://emiratesstadium.co.uk/

I would have begrudgingly accepted Nike Stadium. Why in the flying hell are we letting our stadium be sponsored by the same people who sponsor the shirts of the Russian mercenaries?

We better be paid a f*ck load of money as nobody will ever acceptingly refer to it as "Emirates Stadium".

 

[Tenacious Dees]

http://emiratesstadium.co.uk/

I would have begrudgingly accepted Nike Stadium. Why in the flying hell are we letting our stadium be sponsored by the same people who sponsor the shirts of the Russian mercenaries?

We better be paid a f*ck load of money as nobody will ever acceptingly refer to it as "Emirates Stadium".

Chelsea will not be sponsored by Emirates when the current deal expires, which is some time pretty soon. Apparently they want to be sponsored by a more consumer orientated brand. Whatever that means.

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

Still doesn't the change the fact that they sponsored our title rivals. I can stomach Nike since we've been with them for fifteen years, but anything Chelsea related.

 

[Karbassiyoon]

Should be called the McAlpine Arena

 

[GeordieRoo]

http://emiratesstadium.co.uk/

I would have begrudgingly accepted Nike Stadium. Why in the flying hell are we letting our stadium be sponsored by the same people who sponsor the shirts of the Russian mercenaries?

We better be paid a f*ck load of money as nobody will ever acceptingly refer to it as "Emirates Stadium".

Haha forget Chelski - they sponsor Collingwood as well mate

 

[moomba]

Apparently Vodaphone are the favourites to sponsor Chelsea, in addition to the stadium sponsorship Emirates are a big chance to be Arsenals new kit sponsor.

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

O2 are our sponsors until 2008.

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

I stand corrected. The O2 deal will run out at the end of 05/06 and then from there it will become Fly Emirates with Chelsea being sponsored by Orange Mobile Network next season. I still hate it though.

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

A close source has told me that at "Emirates Stadium" the beer will be Holsten, the electrical equipment SHARP and the computers Hewlett Packard.

It will always be Highbury.

 

[Ricketts]

call it Tina Arena

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

Maurice Flanagan, vice chairman of the Emirates Group of Companies, said: "We have an excellent relationship with Chelsea and are fully committed to the final year of our agreement with them but in two years time we will be Arsenal's main sponsors because we feel they can offer us more in the future

Hah.

 

[clucas91]

Arsenal = bunch of whores.

I'm sick of corporate naming.

Emirates Arsenal vs. Orange Chelsea @ Emirates Stadium brought to you buy O2.

 

[Falchoon]

Should be called the McAlpine Arena

Isn't that in Huddersfield?

 

[Karbassiyoon]

Isn't that in Huddersfield?

yeah the Alfred McAlpine ground is in huddersfield, i think his son was behind the construction of the ashburton grove ground, as part of the McAlpine group

 

[rObeeEe]

Chelsea won't have their shirts sponsered by Orange.

Can assure you of that.

Good deal for Arsenal and it is alot of money they will be getting.

 

[Roonaldo!]

As long as Emirates stops their deal with chelsea there shouldn't be a problem with the stadium name as the money's needed anyway.

After the debt is gone though, then Arsenal should re name the ground to Ashburton Grove.

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

The whole with them converting to the light and leaving the dark side of Chelsea is as follows. Emirates were in negotiations with Chelsea to re-new their sponsorship deal for a further three years when Arsenal announced that it would be selling the naming rights to Ashburton Grove off. Sensing a business opportunity too good to miss Emirates approached Arsenal as well, offering a deal FAR better than the one they were giving Chelsea while lessening their deal with Chelsea. Chelsea didn't accept the new terms and Arsenal accepted Emirates' offer.

Basically, it was a win-win situation for Emirates whereby if Arsenal didn't accept it they'd still have Chelsea, and if they got both then even better for them. Chelsea declined and will probably go with Orange while Arsenal get shirt sponsorship and stadium sponsorship worth in total of 100m pounds over a fifteen year deal.

I still don't like being named after Chelsea's old sponsor. Fah.

 

[moomba]

Chelsea have said that they gave Emirates the flick a while back, not the other way around. They have a bigger deal lined up.

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

Well ... Emirates have said they went with us because it offers them more. And since I'm biased and hate Chelsea, I'll believe our new sponsors.

As much as I hate it, mind.

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

Quality article from Arsenal-World explaining how it works:

Despite media scepticism, Arsenal have financed their £357m stadium development at Ashburton Grove soundly and creatively by using a number of long term sponsorship deals and a long term bank loan.


Cash from Nike and Granada as well as the proceeds from land disposal at Highbury and a £260m loan from a consortium of banks headed by The Royal Bank of Scotland (the group comprises The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC, Espirito Santo Investment, The Bank of Ireland, Allied Irish Banks PLC, CIT Group Structured Finance (UK) Limited and HSH Nordbank AG. ) has secured the largest club development in history.

The term of the bank loan is 14 years and Arsenal intends to renegotiate the term once the stadium is up and running to a term more appropriate to a long term property financing.

It seems, however that the stadium could technically be paid for within the term, from sponsorship deals alone - an outstanding feat of cash flow generation which means that operating revenues from game-day operations, television revenue and merchandising would be available for staff (player) acquisition and salaries.

Starting with the £357 "headline" cost of the stadium , we can immediately take off Granada’s £30m investment which was conditional on structuring a new stadium deal. Nike’s shirt manufacturer’s sponsorship deal, secured earlier in 2004 raised £55m over 7 years (with an extension option) . Around £70m is available from the development of the existing Highbury site less costs already incurred on the stadium of around £50m leaving a loan requirement of £260m

The value of the recently announced Emirates sponsorship is £90m ( The £100m "headline" figure is the "present value" ) covering stadium naming rights for 15 years and shirt rights for 8 years from 2006.) This leaves a figure of £170m under the loan. The remaining sponsorship opportunities to be realised over the 14 years of the loan are the shirt manufacturer sponsorship of 6 years which could be as high as £70m (based on Nike’s £55m in 2004 for 7 years plus inflation ), and the shirt sponsorship for 4 years ( probably £30m). Realistically the shirt deal would be for a longer period for more money. This leaves a capital sum outstanding of £70m. The interest on the loan could be as much as £175m however this amount plus the shortfall in capital repayments, could well be financed by the second stadium naming rights deal in 2019.

As the stadium loan is probably to be refinanced over, say,30 years, the annual cashflow of stadium costs and sponsorship revenue would be:-

Capital Repayment £8.7m

Interest (equal repayment) £3m

Stadium Sponsorship -£5m

Shirt Sponsorship -£5m

Shirt Manufacture Sponsorship -£5m

The media rights associated with the Granada deal have come as an investment into the club rather than a revenue item so these have been excluded. The cashflow benefit from sponsorship less stadium repayments could be as much as £3m per season and means that match revenue, prize money, television money and merchandising would be available for staff (player) acquisition and salary. Additionally , this would mean the entire stadium project being "depreciated" over 30 years - an extremely prudent accounting practice giving "free" stadium use after the initial 30 years. Highbury , of course will have given over 90 years service by the time the final match is played.

The Arsenal board appear to have got this huge capital investment, and its financing, exactly right. Despite the fact there will be confidential clauses which will affect the figures above ( a number of sponsorship bonuses will apply) , the ability to create and manage such a structure is one of the outstanding deals in sport.

A statement in 2003 by Arsenal directors Ken Friar and Danny Fiszman, the two men in charge of the project, said: "We are totally and utterly committed to Ashburton Grove……(this will) give us the ability to deliver a stadium for the 2006/2007 season. "If gambling is doing something without a 100% guarantee of success, then yes, there is a gamble. Are we gambling with the club? The answer is no, …..Ashburton Grove is going to be our new home."

We are lucky to have been driven forward by men of such confidence and conviction. It is certain that Arsene Wenger’s imminent contract extension will have been an easier discussion given the resources (speculatively an extra £30m in annual revenue alone) that North London’s new super stadium will bring. Wenger’s astute transfer dealings and the financing of the new stadium could bring a return to the saying of the 1930s that Arsenal was "The Bank of England" Club.

Yep ... we were once the richest club in England!

 

[Roonaldo!]

But Manchester United always will now.

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

Yeah ... now. We were the richest club in England (and probably the world) in the 30s, while you lot were having fun in the Second Division.

 

[Weaver]

Isn't that in Huddersfield?

The story goes that the McAlpine group were so proud of their work on Huddersfields' new stadium that they decided to buy the naming rights. Have to say it is a nice boutique stadium ... all it isn't great for soccer because the rugby team churns up the surface.

The naming rights thing is no big deal. Officially Southampton's ground in the Friends Provident St Marys Stadium ... everyone just calls it St Marys.

 

[GoalsFrom50Out]

Ours isn't going to be called Emirates Ashburton Grove Stadium or anything of that sort. It will just be Emirates Stadium - that's what many Gooners don't like. What are we meant to call it? "The Ritz"?