Sky Blue Trust

Coventry City Football Club - a ground of our own?

Details: Published: 24 June 2019

Now that a ground share has been agreed for Coventry City FC at St Andrews for next season, thoughts will turn to the possibility that the Club may only return to play home games in the City if they can build their own stadium.

As happened around the time of the Northampton ground-share in 2013/14, the Club have been talking about building a new stadium in the Coventry area and have submitted initial outline ideas to the City Council about a stadium scheme on a particular site. No details of the size, nature, cost or of any supporting commercial development have yet been made available. In 2013/14, we were deeply sceptical about the Club’s intention or capability to build a new stadium and no real progress on that was ever demonstrated. We remain equally sceptical today.

To test the likelihood of that, a group of Trust members, including two accountants and a surveyor have produced an outline evaluation of the financial consequences for the Club of a ground-share long enough to allow a new stadium to be designed and built. We have also looked at the potential cost of such a stadium. The resultant financial conclusions are attached. Of course, ongoing operating losses will vary, dependent on actual attendance at St Andrews.

Assuming that the Club proposes a stadium with a capacity of 20,000, we estimate that a new stadium in the City might cost in excess of £52 million, based on analysis of new stadiums accommodating up to 25,000 people, built in England since the year 2000, with costs updated to April 2019, using construction cost indices. Assuming this is the Club’s intention, a ground share of up to 5 years and the construction, within that period, of a new 20,000 seat stadium could cost the Club a total of £82.6m.

Of course we do not know whether that is the settled intention of the Club’s owners or where a stadium might be built or how it would be financed. The resultant estimated cost makes us ask whether pursuing a new stadium is a practical proposition and whether it would be the best use of scarce resources?

Does a new stadium really make sense, either on economic grounds or for the interests of the Sky Blues Community? Coventry has a population of around 325,000. With its central midlands position, it is close to many other outdoor stadiums and indoor arenas. No one has yet provided a detailed business case that fits CCFC’s circumstances.

The Sky Blue Trust

June 2019

Attachments:
CCFC Consequences of Ground Share.xls

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Sky Blue Trust react to news of the St Andrews ground share

Details: Published: 09 June 2019

We've endured plenty of sad days while supporting Coventry City.

Friday's devastating announcement that the Sky Blues will be relocating to St Andrews next season marks probably the saddest day of all.

To happen once during the disastrous Sixfields period was bad enough but for fans, the real losers in this tragic episode, to have to go through it all again is unforgiveable.

All of those who had the opportunity to do the right thing, ensuring our status in the city of Coventry at the Ricoh Arena, have failed miserably, letting us all down massively.

Everyone will have their own views as to who the main culprits are. We've seen enough on social media in the last few days to see that is the case.

The one group in all of this though and the one that once again are the collateral damage in this sorry saga are us the fans.

We therefore urge all Sky Blues fans to respect the views of others. Some will choose to travel to Birmingham, others won't. Whichever side of the fence you choose to sit on we would ask you to remember that none of this almighty mess is down to supporters, all any of us ultimately want is to watch our team play and do the best they possibly can.

Tragically for the forseeable future that won't now be in Coventry.

The Sky Blue Trust launched our "Countdown to Homelessness" campaign at the start of last season with the aim of raising the profile of this potentially unwelcome outcome and to focus minds to try and prevent it happening.

Now that it has become reality we will continue to engage with all parties to do what we can to help facilitate the earliest possible return to Coventry. In particular we'll look to ensure that the EFL's commitment to quarterly reviews is a meaningful exercise and that they do everything in their power to hasten an early return.

The dismay, anger and disappointment that this disastrous decision has caused is already clear to see. In the coming weeks we shall be exploring ways of galvanising that strength of feeling to demonstrate to the widest audience just what we as Coventry City fans feel about being dragged out of our proud city for the second time.

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The Sky Blue Trust react to news of Coventry’s Ground share.

Details: Published: 27 May 2019

The Sky Blue Trust notes the statement from Coventry City FC advising that the scheduled EFL meeting this week has been cancelled and that a "Plan B" ground share arrangement has been agreed with another Football League club, believed to be Birmingham City FC.

Whilst we acknowledge that it is good news that the club owners and Wasps are still talking with a view to agreeing a mutually beneficial deal to play at the Ricoh, we once again make clear our view that Coventry City FC must play in Coventry. Anything else will be a massive failure on all of those parties with the power to make it happen.

As was made perfectly clear in the survey we facilitated for the EFL, a groundshare outside of Coventry, be it at St Andrews or anywhere else will be unacceptable to the vast majority of the Sky Blue Community.

We are therefore surprised and disappointed that the EFL appear to have accepted the groundshare backstop without any indication as to the date of when, if, how or under what conditions they will ensure that SISU return our Club to our City should the groundshare be implemented.

There is however still time to stop this disastrous measure so instead of wasting any more words we simply say to those who are letting our football club and our city down so badly.

GET IT SORTED QUICKLY!

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