ENGLAND - Stadium and Arena Development News

[Orgoglioso]

I think London out does L.A as a sport 'capital' i mean, Football (soccer), Tennis, rugby, cricket were all invented in Britain and London is the capital in britain sportwise. Then we have our own different sort of sports like Polo which gives it that extra qwerkyness. Its deffinately better than Paris, i don't know why thats on the list.

[KiwiBrit]

Originally Posted by Orgoglioso

Its deffinately better than Paris, i don't know why thats on the list.

Let's see. Home to French Football and Rugby, Horse racing - the Pre d'larc de Triumphe (sorry if it's spelt wrong!) French Open tennis and Masters series, final stage of Tour de France and the French open golf. All international sporting events held every year.

[nyrmetros]

Care to take a stab at NYC? But we have to make 1 point established? Does NYC include the NYC region (which is parts of 3 states), or just NYC city limits proper ?

NYC region gives NYC a chance. NYC city limits does not.

NYC city limits:
Yankee Stadium - 56, 000
Shea Stadium - 55, 000
USTA (US Open Tennis) - Aurthur Ashe Stadium - 23, 000 (not sure about the other courts)
Madison Square Garden - 18,200 (ice hockey), 20, 000 (concerts)

Future:
Brooklyn basketball arena - 19, 000
Yankee Stadium - 50, 000
Mets Stadium - 45, 000




NYC Region:
Yankee Stadium - 56, 000
Shea Stadium - 55, 000
USTA Aurthure Ashe Stadium - 23, 000
Madison Square Garden - 19, 000
Nassau Colliseum - 17, 000
Giants Stadium - 80, 000
Rutgers Stadium - 45, 000
Brendan Byrne Arena - 20, 000
Yale Bowl - 64, 000


Future:
New Yankee Stadium - 50, 000
New Mets Stadium - 45, 000
Brooklyn Arena - 19, 000
New Nassau Colliseum - 19, 000
Newark Arena - 18, 000
Harison Stadium - 25, 000
New Giants Stadium - 83, 000


Total by 2010:
New Yankee Stadium - 50, 000
New Mets Stadium - 45, 000
Madison Square Garden IV - 19, 000
Aurthure Ashe Stadium - 23, 000
New Brooklyn Arena - 19, 000
New Nassau Colliseum - 19, 000
New Giants Stadium - 83, 000
New Newark Arena - 18, 000
New Harrison Stadium - 25, 000
Rutgers Stadium - 45, 000
Yale Bowl - 65, 000
Belmont Park - 200, 000
Aqueduct Track - 90, 000
Meadowlands Racetrack - 40, 000
Yonkers Raceway - 50, 000

[Orgoglioso]

On that Paris list, what's on there that London doesn't have and what London doesn't have better. Plus London has more. London is home to English football, by far a stronger league than France, Wimbledon a more prestigious and famous tournement, Ascott which has just been done up and host one of the biggest horse races in the world, rugby is an english game so it has more spirit in London. Then we have cricket at both Lords and the Oval. Plus Paris only has one football team, london has loads.

[Benjuk]

Melbourne...
Flemington Racecourse, 130000
MCG, 100000
Albert Park FI Circuit, 80000
TelstraDome 56347
Caulfield Racecourse 46800
Calder Park Raceway 44000
Princes Park (closed) 35000
Mooney Valley race course 30000
Victoria Park 27000
Moorabbin Oval 27000
Whitten Oval 25000
Olympic Park Stadium 20000
Arden Street Oval 15000
Punt Road Oval 15000
Elsternwick Park 15000
Coburg City Oval 15000
Knights Stadium 15000
Windy Hill 15000
Brunswick Street Oval 15000
Toorak Park 15000
Rod Laver Arena 14820
Bob Jane Stadium 14000
Melbourne Teac Oval 12000
Vodafone Arena 10800
Epping Stadium 10000
Glenferrie Oval (closed and about to fall down) 10000
Box Hill City Oval 10000
Burbank Oval 10000
Trevor Barker Oval 10000
Kooyong Tennis Centre 8500

That list looks pretty impressive. I won't post pictures though because they would demonstrate the difference between facts and reality. Most of the above consist of a single, aging stand and three sides of open standing on banks of grass. Take AFL/Cricket out of the equation and there's very little left on the list.

[Weebie]

All those AFL Groudns are sh*t and worthless stnading room ground.

Melbourne needs to big purpose built stadium to be taken serious not just these crap gAyFL ground.

[jimjones]

Originally Posted by BaronVonChickenpants

You can't be serious about the LA Collasium and the Rose Bowl?they are as old as the hills...
i think Lords and The Oval could accomodate Baseball.......Ice Hockey and Basketball can all be played at the Excel,Wembley and eventually the O2 arena.....

Well first in regards to Wembley Arena , prime use is a music venue and ice shows. Any pro- hockey or basketball ??? 12,000 seats doesnt compare to
18,000 for three venues in the greater La area with four major league franchises. The way things go with the NBA and the NHL they will have an arena of 18,000 seats for each franchises of the four in LA.
Wembley Arena was build around the time of the 1932 olmypics.
Wembley Arena was originally the Aquatic Venue for the 1934 British Empire Games. If we are going to include a music venue with wembley arena how about including the Great Western Forum in LA still in use by a huge gosphel church group and rented for concerts. Wembley Arena well the events coming up in the new year are a boxing match, billiards ,netball and more music events then sports, if you can actually call billiards a sport LOL.
The O2 dome , what was the original purpose of that building ????
basketball team , lawn bowls, ice hockey ???? No a display of british largess celebrating the new millinium and it is well documented the financial problems of that building that the british couldnt seem to handle so how the Yanks from LA are in charge.

Here are the people behind the o2 redevelopment
The Anschutz Entertainment Group is a sporting and music entertainment presenter and a subsidiary of The Anschutz Corporation. The company owns or operates several major entertainment/sporting venues, including Staples Center and The Home Depot Center. In England they own the Manchester Evening News Arena, and the Millennium Dome which is being redeveloped as a multi-purpose arena, and re-launched under the name "The O2".

As part of the development of the Millenium Dome, Anschutz also purchased the London river service company Thames Clipper, to provide transport links using the river service to and from Central London and the Dome.

The company also owns a number of sports teams, including Los Angeles Galaxy, Chicago Fire, Houston Dynamo, D.C. United, Los Angeles Kings, Manchester Monarchs, five European Hockey franchises, Hammarby soccer team (Sweden), as well as interests in the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Sparks. The company also purchased the Champions on Ice figure skating tour in 2006.

The company makes a significant amount of its money by leveraging its sports interests, already significant earners, by using the stadia in which these teams play to host various other entertainment events, most notably concerts. Indeed, Philip Anschutz created the company by buying up several small local promoters in Los Angeles in order to fill up the schedule for his new sports venue, STAPLES Center. It is now the second-largest event promoter in the United States.

AEG--the world’s largest owner of sports teams and sports events, the owner of the world’s most profitable sports and entertainment venues, and the world’s second largest presenter of live music and entertainment events.

BASED IN LOS ANGELES formed and founded .

Then you have the little minor Arenas in the los angeles area 10,000 to 16,000 range including . Gosh newer arena in the second teir outnumbering your largest arena Four to your One with tennants in them and basically privately funded.

The Galen Centre 10,258 seats purpose built and opened last year for the
USC Trojans basketball team. One third of the funding coming from the Galen family.
The Long Beach Arena 11,200 seats basketball and ice hockey use
The Pauley Pavillon 12,800 seats home of the UCLA Bruins basketball team
Edwin Wendell Pauley Sr. donating one fifth of the money required to build that facility match what the alumina donated.
The Los Angeles Memorial Arena 14,456 seats for basketball , home of the NBA La clippers until 1999. home of the USC Trojans until 2006.

With the Home Depot Sports Center you have the 2500 seat velodrome, , 13000 seat tennis centre and then you have the home of a mexicain major league soccer team the Deportivo Chivas USA and Major League Soccer team the LA Galaxy in a 27,000 seat stadium brand new . I have a question for the soccer people in england any baseball teams from the country of France share a 27,000 seat baseball stadium in London ???? No I thought so

An Athletics field also is in the Home Depot Sports Center with 2000 perminant seat for a Major league lacrosse team and that stadium has had temporary seating installed at times to bring the seating up to 22,000. Lacrosse another foreign sport to america the national sport of canadain indians . Hey and then there is Ice hockey in los angeles for 40 years with the NHL.

Yes considering the Yanks from Los Angeles own one of the venues you are looking to use for the olympics in 2012 london really is A sports capital of the World. London however is not THE Sports capital of the world without ownership, sports franchise numbers in diverse sports including sports foriegn to their soils and tennants for those wonderfully expensive pieces of architecture you people are famous for have one time uses for. Gosh I will tell you what I m being unfair here why dont you throw in the millineum
FERRIS WHEEL as a sports venue or LONDON TOWER.
At least with a LA colusium or Pasadena Rose bowl you actually have longterm tennants for buidlings . The USC Trojans Football Team occupies the LA Memorial Coluseum and the UCLA Bruins Occupy the Rose Bowl.
The LA coluseum will most likely be the athletic field for the 2016 games and
an redeveloped NFL field at a billion dollar cost. If the NFL doesnt like that idea then LA and the NFL will build a purpose built stadium.

LA's dodger stadium is being redeveloped for 250 million and Angels stadium has been redeveloped recently as well.
While most places including the UK struggle with financing stadia and arenas
Philip Anschutz owns the Millinium Dome , Manchester Evening News Arena
and LA Staples Center.

Yes you get a new wembley stadium that is still not open replacing the one that was older then the LA coluseum and an Emigrants stadium and you think you are the world best ROTFLMAO. Considering that the olympic stadium for 2012 will be down scaled for athletics it shows how much sports are a fixture of your society.
considering the summer olympics was saved by Peter uberhoff in 1984 with his guidance making the games a 250 million dollar profit for the first and last time we would not be having the jolly old town on london building these great piece of sport architecture for the olympics in 2012 would we? No one bid on the summer olympics for 1984 except Los Angeles and the commerical deals made there saved the games and furthered it.

Sports capitals are made on money both invested and earned . Sports capitals are also made on history. Unfortuately London did not have a peter uberhoff and doesnt have one today. London also does not have the earnings of an LA or NY for that matter but I still do consider it A sports capital of the world , for football , tennis , billiards and darts. English Football is a girls sport here in north america . atleast that is the version LA hosted in 2003 for the fifa womens world cup LOL. Yes in LA they actually save acting like your hurt for the movie and tv actors while soccer that is a required talent on the filed of play LOL. I always wondered why the brazilains had aquatic centres next to their soccer stadia . They practice diving in water there before the game LOL.


jim jones

[Its AlL gUUd]

that post made me laugh so much

no one was attacking LA, relax

[GreenwichSE10]

I wont spell out the grammatical errors in your last post you iliterate baboon but suffice it to say you silly halfwit that the evidence is clear and beyond reproach..London is the World capital of Sport.and that includes sports that are played all around the world not just one country (ahem)

muppet said

London does not have the earnings of an La or Ny for that matter

..come again?

[NavyBlue]

Originally Posted by Benjuk

That list looks pretty impressive. I won't post pictures though because they would demonstrate the difference between facts and reality. Most of the above consist of a single, aging stand and three sides of open standing on banks of grass.

Then why post it in the first place?

Take AFL/Cricket out of the equation and there's very little left on the list.

That's like saying take away soccer and cricket from London . . . what's your point???

[KiwiBrit]

Originally Posted by Orgoglioso

London is home to English football.

As Paris is to French football.

Wimbledon a more prestigious and famous tournement

The French Open is still another ONE of only FOUR grand slam tournaments played anywhere.

Ascott which has just been done up and host one of the biggest horse races in the world

So does the Arc de Triumphe

rugby is an english game so it has more spirit in London

Rugby was first played in...Rugby so why would London have more spirit than anywhere else in England? Motor racing Grand Prix was a French idea, but I would not say motor racing has more spirit in Paris???

On that Paris list, what's on there that London doesn't have and what London doesn't have better

What apart from the Tour de France and it's open Golf championship.

I can't see why you are putting down Paris so much. You said you couldn't understand why I put Paris on my list, so I gave you some examples. I bet I've probably left out a few more sports they host too.

Yes England plays host to loads of sporting events but so do many other cities of the World. Paris being one of them

[jimjones]

Originally Posted by GreenwichSE10

I wont spell out the grammatical errors in your last post you iliterate baboon but suffice it to say you silly halfwit that the evidence is clear and beyond reproach..London is the World capital of Sport.and that includes sports that are played all around the world not just one country (ahem)

muppet said..come again?

Ah whats the big basketball team in london anyways

The Beefeaters ????? and what cellphone companys logo is on the jersey LOL.


jim jones

[carlspannoosh]

London is arguably a world capital for outdoor field sport type stadiums but until the dome development it had no real world class basketball/ice Hockey type arenas.

As for the reduction in capacity of the Olympic stadium i would say that a world class athletics stadium has no need for a permanent 80k capacity because that type of attendance is so rare for athletics events anywhere in the world.


carlspannard

[jimjones]

Originally Posted by cardiff

Great work! truely international sporting facilities. Is baseball popular outside of the USA and Japan in the same way football (soccer) is?

Actually Cuba,Venezuela,Columbia, Panama, Domincian Republic, Mexico, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Curacao, Aruba and Puerto Rico have players making up 27 percent of the players in the Major Leagues in America and Canada. To get to that level of play for baseball is like getting to premiership football in europe. You have to be very good and that usually requires good minor league support in your home country. Hey David Edgar of Canada scored for Newcastle the other day in a 2-2 tie with Manchester United
Both Japan and Taiwan have had long runs of minor league championships playing against the best in the united states and the rest of the world that takes part in the little league world series which has teams from all these countries and even europe and the middle east. Curacao is now emerging as
the little league powerhouse because of their major league star Andrew Jones of the Atlanta Braves has payed for a small baseball park on the island and kids on the island are following in his footsteps.

45 percent of all players under contract for major league baseball are from outside the United States. I would not doubt that players under contract are from central american countries not on the list above, Nicaragua has twice the number of baseball parks to soccer stadia. New Zealand, the Netherlands and other countries that are traditional thought of as soccer nations are most likely fielding players in the minor league feeder systems. Baseball is primarily popular in North and Central America, Eastern Asia with taiwan , south korea and japan having their own professional in stadiums of 10s of thousands . In Sapporo Japan their domed stadium is a dual sports use Baseball and Soccer. This was a stadium used for the FIFA world cup in 2002.

No Baseball does not have total worldwide appeal but really football doesnt either but it is larger then baseballs following of course.
The largest baseball game for attendance in the western hemisphere was played at the La memorial coluseum in the late 1950's . The largest attendance for a baseball game was not in the United States but in australia at the melbourne cricket grounds in 1885 LOL. Incredible to think that aussies would go out and watch baseball at that time with a number larger then 100,000 people.

Basketball actually is the north american sport that rivals footballs popularity for coverage of the globe.
about 35 countries field NBA players and pro leagues in south america, europe have as good quality of play as the NBA. China and Africa are emerging as places that basketball is being played at a very high level. Australia and new Zealand also have good pro leagues as well. China,Europe,Australia,New Zealand,South Korea,Canada, countries in the carribean and south america are advancing players to the NBA in good quality and quantity.

Just a friendly FYI backgrounder.

Like I said Soccer is making great strides in america with a very full rooster of pro sports dividing attention. The attention is not so divided in great britian.
Rugby , Soccer , Cricket, Darts, Snooker is it not like north america LOL. Of course 300 million people compared to 70 million is really not a fair picture I know that .

jim jones

[jimjones]

Originally Posted by carlspannard

London is arguably a world capital for outdoor field sport type stadiums but until the dome development it had no real world class basketball/ice Hockey type arenas.

As for the reduction in capacity of the Olympic stadium i would say that a world class athletics stadium has no need for a permanent 80k capacity because that type of attendance is so rare for athletics events anywhere in the world.

carlspannard

Well yes you are right on the athletics thing. There is no pro circuit and it is actually very selfish of a Sebastan Coe to not have a soccer team take over the olympic stadium post games. middle distance runner with a complex LOL.
As to world capital of outdoor Stadia New York City has no domed stadiums and they have outdoor in brooklyn, queens , the bronx ,and new jersey with major and minor league teams. Giants stadium, Yankee stadium, Shea Stadium are your major stadiums. then comes the minor league stadiums in newark and brooklyn among others. these cities of 6 to 10 million all have great degrees of venues for sports . the difference really is the culture and what entertains these citys. To me a sports capital of the world is a city that can support more then the basic national sports that have been around for eons.

The developement of the Dome I would say is more a doing something with the dome as opposed to a need for sports. The ice hockey league in great britian has certainly went thru ups and downs changing names and ownership.
Basketball I think would be more successful in great britian then ice hockey.

jim jones

[Benjuk]

Originally Posted by NavyBlue

Then why post it in the first place?

My point was, you can make a list of venues that looks very impressive, but on closer inspection it might not be so.

The London list looks fantastic - many of the venues are stunning, but it doesn't make London the capital city of sport. This argument has been run on the forum before (after Melbourne had won some dodgy poll as the 'World Capital of Sport'). Things like this are all dubious.

People have been suggesting that LA/New York shouldn't sing about their baseball stadiums because it's not a world sport... So what? They have a popular sport - they needed a large venue for it - so they built one (and fill it on a regular basis), it's as valid a venue as Wembley or the MCG.

Originally Posted by NavyBlue

That's like saying take away soccer and cricket from London . . . what's your point???

Not quite. Most oval venues in Australia are used for both AFL and cricket, as the sports have similar sized and shaped playing areas... So it would actually be more like saying "take away all of the rugby/football dual use venues". My comment about taking away the AFL/cricket venues was more based on the smaller venues that make up a lot of my list - as most are single stands on one side with banks of grass around the rest... On paper, looks pretty good - in reality, not so. A bit like having Loftus Road, Selhurst Park, Craven Cottage and The Stoop listed amongst Wembley, Emirates and Twickers.

Also, a few on here should take a look at the very beginning of the first post -
***Please note – Not THE World Capital of Sport for all those who are very protective about their cities!!***

- and wind it down a bit.

By the way, what sports are played at Earl's Court? (not attacking, just curious).

[Benjuk]

Originally Posted by jimjones

Like I said Soccer is making great strides in america with a very full rooster of pro sports dividing attention. The attention is not so divided in great britian.
Rugby , Soccer , Cricket, Darts, Snooker is it not like north america LOL. Of course 300 million people compared to 70 million is really not a fair picture I know that .

jim jones

Actually, we have professional Ice Hockey and Basketball leagues in the UK too - just no one bothers to go. Same goes for the English franchise of the 'World Football League'-thing - no one cared enough and it died on it's arse.

Talking for myself and my friends, before I moved to Australia - I didn't know anyone who'd attended a rugby, cricket (I wandered into a county cricket match once, but got bored and left after 30 minutes), tennis, ice hockey or basketball match. I'd been to a few big boxing title fights (mainly at Ice Hockey venues as it happens), but mainly it was football - through choice rather than lack of it.

It's not so much a case of there not being a diversity of pro sports to split attention, it's more a case of the English not caring about anything else but football (don't be fooled by the rugby - other than cup finals and internationals, crowds are small compared to football).

[KiwiBrit]

Originally Posted by jimjones

No Baseball does not have total worldwide appeal but really football doesnt either...

I'm sure I read once that more countries belong in FIFA than belong in the United Nations.

[Llanfairpwllgwy-ngyllgogerychwy-rndrobwllllanty-siliogogogoch]

Britania rules the world !
And YES , football is the worlds nr 1 sport.
Only the US and A prefers tabaco chewing baseball players and sissies with helmets over football.

[carlspannoosh]

Originally Posted by jimjones

To me a sports capital of the world is a city that can support more then the basic national sports that have been around for eons.
jim jones

I wouldnt agree. The basic national sports in London/UK also happen to be popular in many other parts of the world and so many of the stadiums are internationally famous. Even the little ones like White Hart Lane.