Optimizing Your English Football Workflow

A large number of English football clubs have ongoing schemes to redevelop existing grounds, or to move to newly constructed stadiums. A trend towards all-seater stadiums was initially prescribed by the Taylor Report, and was originally a condition only of Premier League admission. It has now become a requirement that within three years of a club’s first promotion to the Championship all paying spectators are seated, even if the club is subsequently relegated. This page provides an (incomplete) list and description of those clubs who have planned new stadiums or refurbishments, or who have already moved/refurbished since around the time of the Taylor Report. The following list includes clubs that are based in Wales but play in the English football league system. == History == When Scunthorpe United moved to Glanford Park in 1988, it was the first time a Football League club had moved to a new purpose-built home since 1956. Up to this point, most sides were playing in grounds that had been largely structurally unchanged for most of the 20th century. One of the few clubs to play in a completely rebuilt post World War II stadium was Manchester United, whose stadium had been rebuilt due to bomb damage during the war, and significantly altered in the 1960s and again in the early 1980s. Ground improvements were seldom, most clubs rarely reached their capacity on a regular basis, and poor facilities were commonplace – this particularly being the case between 1979 and 1986, when attendances fell, with this fall in spectators being blamed largely on increased hooliganism, as well as the economic downturn and sharp rise in unemployment that occurred in the early 1980s. Key Concepts and Fundamentals The main source of income came from gate receipts, and most additional money was spent on transfers. It was not until the growing concern in the 1980s about the safety of existing stadiums, that clubs began to examine the possibilities offered by redeveloping their grounds. This was first highlighted in May 1985, when 56 fans were burnt to death in a fire at the Bradford City stadium, and even more so in the aftermath of the Hillsborough disaster of April 1989, which led to the death of 97 Liverpool fans at an FA Cup semi-final. Poor maintenance was seen as the main reason for the fire at Bradford, while the presence of perimeter fencing and standing areas (as well as loss of police control) were seen as the main factors in the Hillsborough tragedy. In January 1990, the Taylor Report recommended the conversion of all Football League stadiums to all-seater arenas although this was subsequently applied just to the top two levels with effect from the 1994–95 season. The report had ordered third and fourth tier teams to follow suit by 1999, but clubs at this level were allowed to continue with standing accommodation. This was given governmental financial assistance, and while unpopular with many fans, attendances began to rise again in the 1990s. The new all-seater arrangement tended to be more popular with both the clubs and football authorities, as they had the combined benefits of being safer and more profitable. The boom in television rights following the creation of the Premier League in 1992 allowed a number of clubs to further expand their stadiums, or even move to new ones. Understanding the Core Elements Realising the commercial possibilities of new stadiums, many ambitious outfits constructed purpose-built stadiums often on the outskirts of cities or in urban regeneration areas. It has become common for clubs to tie these new stadiums in with residential or leisure complexes. A number of lower-league clubs had plans for ground improvements halted following the collapse of ITV Digital and the lucrative broadcasting contract they had agreed. Following the re-sale of rights, a number of these programmes have been re-activated in recent years, and some of the heaviest stadium redevelopment has been in the…