Written evidence submitted by Graham Elliott

 

THE PROPOSED SALE OF WEMBLEY STADIUM (DCMS COMMITTEE SUBMISSION)

Introduction

  1. My name is Graham Elliott. I am a supporter of the national game.  I am also a supporter of Manchester United. I play the game (11-a-side and 5-a-side). I have watched England play at Wembley many times. A love of the game runs in my family. I, like many supporters of the game in this country, am alarmed at the proposal to sell the home of English football since 1923 to an American business.

Argument

       2.    The Football Association, founded in 1863 and the first national organisation of its kind, has 

               had Wembley Stadium as its home since 1923 when the FA Cup final was first played there. 

               It is known globally as the home of English football. It is the home of the senior England 

               Team. Its current architecture (characterised by the arch) and previous form (characterised 

               by the twin towers are emblematic of the English game and the game that we codified and 

               gave to the world.

 

  1. The proposal of Martin Glenn to sell Wembley Stadium to an American business and to

lease it back for  England games displays the characteristics of someone who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. England, as a leading nation in the governance of the game, has a home. There is no good reason for it to cease having a home and to be de facto homeless. The fact that the person wishing to buy the stadium wants to put on non-football (i.e. ‘soccer’) event s there shows that this proposal, if it were to be approved, would be purely for financial reasons and would severely risk the credibility and image of the English game.

 

  1. In the financial year 2016-17 the FA was able to invest £ 127m in the game at all levels.  

Beginning with the 2018-19 season, the FA will have made $ 1bn from selling TV rights to Pitch International and IMG. The England team’s presence at Euro 16 and the World Cup 2018 has further boosted the FA’s coffers. The FA does not need to sell Wembley Stadium.

 

  1. If the worse were to happen and Wembley were sold to become the plaything of an 

American ‘football’ team owner, the stadium would change its style, furniture and look. It would be adorned with images of the American game, it would change its feel and look. It would no longer be ours. We would be a stranger in our own home.

 

  1. Public money amounting to £ 160m went into the purchase of the new Wembley Stadium: the FA does not have the right to dispose of that investment. 

 

Summary

 

  1. The FA does not have the moral authority to sell Wembley Stadium. It is a national asset. The current FA council (including its CEO) is the current custodian of the stadium.

 

The FA does not need to sell the stadium to fund grass roots football. This is a lie. The game is well-funded at all levels by a mixture of the FA, other government bodies, charities  and local and regional governments.

 

The proposal stinks of a pointless, risky commercial venture by someone whose real interests are more for self-publicity and self-advancement than for the good of the game.

 

 

June 2018