This argument has been brewing for a long time and finally there’s an end to it that’s near at hand. We should know the results of who’s going to be taking over the running over of the stadium for the Olympics after the games of 2012 in Stratford. There are only two, aggressive competitors, West Ham and Tottenham Hotspur.
While they have both handed in their plans, Tottenham has caused the most stir. They want to move nearly 5 miles and remove the athletic track and this has everyone up in arms, from the guy at the corner pub to the man upstairs, in the government top tiers.
There is even a rumbling of a parliamentary debate.
The alternative plan is to renovate White Hart Lane. However, the difference in cost is not insignificant. Estimates have it that the difference is £200 million. Before you slough it off as just another sports figure that’s too large for mortals to comprehend, consider that it is almost 100% more expensive for the Hart Lane project than to move the stadium.
Money is a different beast when it comes to football. It doesn’t just talk. It’s shouting and yelling, while it’s running around wild. Finally it won’t stop until its throat is worn out and bleeding. The game today depends more on money than ever before, and on more money than ever before, that’s for sure. A trivial amount gets done without big money being swapped to do it. This is exactly the reason Channel 5 and ITV have been given the go ahead to air the matches.
It’d be a sad sight to see Tottenham lag behind Chelsea or Manchester City, simply due to lack of financial punch to nab the top players. Changing stadiums fro White Hart Lane might seem a pity, but it doesn’t have to elicit such sad emotions as some are expect to yield. It is a huge step forward and that’s for sure.
The West Ham United team is still hopeful that after the London 2012 Olympic Games they will be able to call the Olympic Stadium home.