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This week’s main report looks at the future of the London Olympic Stadium with two London sides interested in possibly moving there. Explanations of key vocabulary (in bold) can be found at the foot of the post.
Introduction
The 2012 London Olympics is still 18 months away but the decision about what to do with the stadium after the games is causing huge uproar in the capital. When the UK Olympic bid won the right to host the games back in 2005 they promised a sporting legacy for London, which, it was assumed, would include using the stadium as a centre for athletics. Since then, however, two of the capital’s football teams have shown strong interest in taking over the stadium post-2012. West Ham appear to have the better ‘right’ to the stadium due to geographical and historical reasons with the east-London club based in the same Newham Borough as the Olympic Stadium in Stratford. But there’s another team, Tottenham, who also feel they have a have a right to the stadium.
West Ham
As we have already mentioned the Olympic Stadium is very much in West Ham’s hinterland and so if the decision is to be made on proximity then it would be no contest; their current ground at Upton Park is only 3 kilometres away from the stadium as opposed to Tottenham’s White Hart Lane which is nearly 5 miles away in the Borough of Haringey. West Ham’s proposal also includes maintaining the athletics track around the pitch, while they are also suggesting that the venue will be an all-purpose one: football, athletics, concerts and even cricket would all take place there. The problems with West Ham’s bid, however, also include the track with many football commentators arguing that any stadium with one tends to lose some of the atmosphere normally generated at a football ground, while others feel that West Ham are simply not big enough to fill the stadium, which of course would further diminish any atmosphere.
Tottenham
Tottenham – and yes, they are my team – are also bidding for the right to use the stadium, a far more controversial bid. Fans are not happy about the proposed move away from their current area, particularly as the club had unveiled plans to build a new stadium beside their current home. The club claim that they have had little support from their local borough and that the cost of developing the Olympic Stadium would be far cheaper than doing so at their current home. The fact that transportation links to and from the ground would be much better is another reason for the club to make the move. The club would tear down the Olympic Stadium and build a football-only replacement instead, which might satisfy the football purists but would horrify those who already see the A£500 million spent on the stadium as a waste of money. Tottenham are not interested in having anything to do with athletics and so those who hoped for a post-Olympics legacy for that sport are very much against Spurs’ proposal – despite the fact that the club have offered support to rebuild the athletics centre at Crystal Palace.
Future?
As a Spurs fan who used to live 100 yards from the ground, it saddens me to see the club thinking about moving. Not only because the area around the current stadium really needs to be developed but because the club has been there since 1882 – the team is not called Tottenham for nothing, it is part of the fabric of the area. True, Spurs may make more money from the move, it may make economic sense but it will also take away a huge part of the club’s (and the area’s) history and soul. At a time when fans are complaining about the amount of money in the game, it is time for a team to show some class. Come on Tottenham, stay at The Lane – we are better than that.
Vocabulary
legacy: To leave something behind that means something
the capital’s football teams : Two teams from London – West Ham and Tottenham
hinterland: The area around something, the local region
proximity: ‘nearness’; how close something is
the venue: The place where something happens
all-purpose one: A stadium where all kinds of sport takes place – not just football
diminish: Decrease, lessen, lose
unveiled plans: To reveal or show their plans
local borough: Local parts of the city, the city is divided up into smaller areas
tear down: Destroy
football purists: Those who love football only
