New Stadium For Bristol?

[PhatWill]

This article was published in yesterdays Guardian: http://observer.guardian.co.uk/sport/story...rticle_continue

This part of the article grabbed my attention. Basically the spread of top quality football stadiums in England aren't evenly distributed and so other areas of the country will have to get involved as part of the bid.

2 things that strike me...firstly the bias of the chief exec of south west tourism towards Plymouth. Must be an Argyle fan, as surely he should remain impartial?! Secondly, the lack of knowledge the mayor of Bristol has of Rovers new ground...it's 18k not 26k! And chance to expand it further?! I don't think so!

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Down in the South West Bristol and Plymouth are preparing the case for an area that, if denied any football in 2018, would be the largest region unrepresented. 'Plymouth is a city of a quarter of a million,' said Malcom Bell, chief executive of South West Tourism, which also covers Bristol. 'Imagine a big screen on the Hoe, where Francis Drake played bowls, watched by 50,000 people. It's surely our sporting entitlement to finally have a big stadium. And it would allow us to put big concerts on there.'

What of Bristol's challenge? 'It is still two hours away from most of the region. This area is disenfranchised so it has to be Plymouth. And think of the summer down here - Devon and Cornwall are the country's most popular tourist destinations.'

The mayor of Bristol, Peter Abraham, disagrees. 'A new 26,000-seat stadium shared by the rugby club and Bristol Rovers has just won planning permission.' That could be enlarged. 'If England is chosen to hold the World Cup and it's the same old clubs selected then how can we show the world our country?'

Let the debate begin...

The contenders

From Yorkshire to Devon, best of the rest

Yorkshire

Leeds - Elland Road

The city is going through a boom, offers plenty of nightlife and culture - including world-famous fish and chips - the beer's decent, and Leeds is well placed if you fancy the James Herriot heritage trail and a cup of tea in Harrogate, or a bracing walk over the moors. The club are heading down, though, and Elland Road is looking a bit tired.

Or Sheffield - Hillsbrough

Home to the current sports minister, the chairman of the FA and the world's oldest club (Sheffield FC), so it has a head start. Great for walking in the nearby Pennines and Peak District, but the city itself, although sporty, is seen as a bit of a khazi by many visiting fans. Hillsborough would need tarting up.

The Midlands

Wolverhampton - Molineux

You wouldn't want to spend much time in the town itself unless you're holed up in a Banks's pub, or you love dog racing or horse racing, which seem to be on every day. Depending which road you take, 15 minutes out of town and you're looking at filthy canals and factories, or beautiful rolling countryside. Steeped in football history and Wolves were arguably the world's most famous team before the European Cup kicked off in the mid-1950s. Accessible from all points.

Or Nottingham - City Ground

The stadium down by the river hosted Euro 96 games. If the densely populated East Midlands is to have a venue, this is it. Airport nearby, but the city has a big crime problem.

South Coast

Southampton - St Mary's

Smart stadium would need more seats, but that should be easy enough. A good spot for tourists with the New Forest and Isle of Wight nearby. Smart, clean but a bit dull.

Or Portsmouth - New venue

A proper, earthy football city, one of whose MPs is leading the campaign to bring back small areas of safe standing in our top stadiums. More tourist attractions than most, but not exactly a beauty spot and it's hard to say how the locals would take to being invaded by foreigners. Fratton Park, the stadium that time forgot, would have to be trashed and a new one built. It's just talk at the moment.

Or Brighton - New venue

No chance on paper, because of protracted problems over the new stadium, but what a host city this would be. The most famous seaside resort in the world (so they say) and you can walk to the South Downs from the beach. Gay capital of Britain, great nightclubs, loads of hotels, only an hour from London. Shame about the football...

Bristol New venue

A no-brainer. Regional capital of the West, which must have a host city. Bristol is huge, tourists enjoy it and English-speaking football fans will love the local accent. The football clubs might have moved up by 2018 but who cares? Surely they can rustle up a 40,000-capacity stadium; they simply have to.

Or Plymouth - Home Park

Needs regeneration money but it would be a good investment for a part of the country that's often overlooked. Its tourist attractions are obvious; has an airport.

Lancashire

Preston - Deepdale/New venue

The traditionalist's choice. Home of the Football League, the national football museum, and the first 'giants' of the English game in Victorian days. A day out to the Lake District or Blackpool is easy, and Manchester and Liverpool are close, too. A new stadium or a rebuild of Deepdale would be needed

Or Blackpool - New venue

They should have got the Supercasino but didn't; so what better way to regenerate than a new World Cup stadium with a casino in the main stand? The new ground could be used all year round for shows, conferences and exhibitions. The Italians ploughed money into Palermo (then in the third division) in 1990, so why not? Sophisticated Japanese fans would love it.

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[GrahamC]

It's from a huge piece that was in last week's Observer, which I was amazed at the time received absolutely no publicity either on here or in Bristol at all.

As you say Abraham's comments are laughable and the pro Plymouth bias of the South West development agency should come as no surprise to anyone, either.

Just image if we had a decent council (instead of one now ranked one of the worst in the uk) and City got their act together we could have a game or two in BS3 in 2018, I'm not holding my breath, though.

[cidercity1987]

It's from a huge piece that was in last week's Observer, which I was amazed at the time received absolutely no publicity either on here or in Bristol at all.

As you say Abraham's comments are laughable and the pro Plymouth bias of the South West development agency should come as no surprise to anyone, either.

Just image if we had a decent council (instead of one now ranked one of the worst in the uk) and City got their act together we could have a game or two in BS3 in 2018, I'm not holding my breath, though.

It's been floating about on the Rovers forum for a while to be fair.

When I read it the first time I was amazed at what the South West Tourism guy said. 'Plymouth is a city of a quarter of million people' blah blah blah. Well mate, Bristol is a city of half a million people, with a shedload more living in outlying towns that Plymouth don't really have.

[PhatWill]

It's from a huge piece that was in last week's Observer, which I was amazed at the time received absolutely no publicity either on here or in Bristol at all.

As you say Abraham's comments are laughable and the pro Plymouth bias of the South West development agency should come as no surprise to anyone, either.

Just image if we had a decent council (instead of one now ranked one of the worst in the uk) and City got their act together we could have a game or two in BS3 in 2018, I'm not holding my breath, though.

Not really that suprising...the EP are happy to use up copious amounts of column inches backing (sorry impartially reporting) Rovers' stadium plans, but then once they've secured a nice new stadium they can't be arsed to give details of a major national report suggesting that a 40k stadium is being primed for the West Country!

As you say, it would appear that once again BCC will be standing in the way of any progress. It appears, judging by the inaccuracies in his interview, that even the mayor of our fair city hasn't got a clue what's going on - so what hope do we really have?

We should be front runners for this, or at least try to be. Plymouth have already extended their ground recently, Rovers have the go-ahead...who else is there??

The campaign should already be gathering momentum, and here's hoping and praying that SL and CS have been working behind the scenes to announce something next month.

[22A]

No matter how good a ground there is in Bristol or Plymouth, if we ain't got a Premiership club, we won't be chosen.

During Euro 96 I got on 606 and stated the tourno was awarded to England, not just the Premiership. I then suggested games such as Switzerland v Croatia wouldn't be a sell out and could have been played at Norwich, Ipswich, Plymouth or ideally Bristol. The then presenter was amazed at my naiivity.

[cidercity1987]

No matter how good a ground there is in Bristol or Plymouth, if we ain't got a Premiership club, we won't be chosen.

During Euro 96 I got on 606 and stated the tourno was awarded to England, not just the Premiership. I then suggested games such as Switzerland v Croatia wouldn't be a sell out and could have been played at Norwich, Ipswich, Plymouth or ideally Bristol. The then presenter was amazed at my naiivity.

I'd agree that it's naive to suggest Ipswich/Norwich and probably Plymouth. But Bristol is something like the 7th largest city in the country, nowhere near other big cities so surely we should be high on the list for a world cup match?

[22A]

I've spoken to another City fan of my age. He reckons Ashton Gate was turned down for 1966 because we only had one stand at the time, if both sides had stands, Ashton Gate would have hosted World Cup matches. Anyone confirm this please?