Spurs are now faced with safety concerns
Spurs’ new stadium opening is put back over safety problems
TOTTENHAM have activated an option to play fixtures at Wembley this season as the club have had to delay the opening of their ground due to safety issues. Spurs officials have informed the Football Association of their intention to play games at Wembley. The north London club had hoped to open the stadium doors for the first time for Liverpool’s visit on September 15, with work happening round the clock in an effort to ensure they hit their proposed date. But it was confirmed last night that it will not be ready for the Liverpool clash. The Premier League game against Cardiff on October 6 has also been moved to Wembley as has the NFL clash between the Seattle Seahawks and the Oakland Raiders eight days later. No timeline is in place, leaving uncertainty over when the problems will be rectified and questions over when the club will begin life at the new 62,000-seater venue.
TOTTENHAM’S move into their new stadium has been put back until the end of October at best after problems with the £850million ground’s safety system.
Spurs admit they do not know when their 62,062-seat home will be ready and last night they switched two more games — against Liverpool in September and Cardiff City the following month — to their temporary home of Wembley.
The NFL fixture between the Seattle Seahawks and the Oakland Raiders has also been moved and the venue for Spurs’ match with Manchester City on October 28 is uncertain too with another NFL game taking place at Wembley that day.
Spurs chairman Daniel Levy said last night: ‘We know this will be disappointing for all our season-ticket holders, premium members and our fans worldwide. We appreciate the support our partner the NFL has shown since the extent of this issue became evident today.
‘At the start of the project we asked for your support during what we knew would be a complex and challenging build and now we ask for your continued patience and forbearance.’
Spurs had hoped to open the stadium’s doors for the first time for Liverpool’s visit on September 15, with work going on around the clock in an effort to ensure they hit their proposed date.
But yesterday they revealed ‘recent testing and commissioning has now shown issues with the critical safety systems’.
Tottenham are meeting construction partners Mace and contractors working on the stadium to work out a new timetable for opening.
Their next home match after the Manchester City game, for which Spurs say the venue is ‘to be decided’, is a London derby against Chelsea on November 24.
At least one Champions League home game will also have to be moved.
Spurs could play their group games at Wembley before moving to their new stadium if they qualify for the knockout stages.
Domestically, the EFL are set to allow them to switch their Carabao Cup ties to away matches if they are drawn at home in the early rounds.
Tottenham will face Fulham at Wembley this weekend but it was hoped that would be the only home game Mauricio Pochettino’s side would have to play away from their new home.
The NFL’s Mark Waller said: ‘Everyone has been so excited about the prospect of playing in the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and I know all at the club are very disappointed, but determined to clear this final hurdle.
‘We totally understand the issue. We shall continue to work with them towards making our future games at Spurs a huge success. We are very excited about our long-term partnership.’
The vast challenge of building a new stadium in just over 12 months had threatened to delay the opening even before yesterday’s discovery of problems.
Spurs have faced a number of logistical challenges in their ambitious attempt to build a new stadium on the same site as their old one — the only club to have constructed a new ground on the existing land.