Swansea ready to take control of the Liberty
SWANSEA City Football Club is finally set to take control of the Liberty Stadium in a deal that would generate £300,000 per year in rent for the council.
The local authority built the £27m stadium, which opened in 2005, but has not had guaranteed rental income since then.
As part of the planned deal, it would also receive a percentage of any stadium naming rights deal in the future.
For the Swans the new arrangement would give the club more control of its operations, including potential stadium expansion, which would in turn make a naming rights offer more attractive.
Swansea’s cabinet is due to make a decision on the stadium transfer proposal, which is not thought to involve an upfront payment, at a meeting on November 16.
Both parties have said the Ospreys would continue playing at the Landore venue on a long-term lease.
Negotiations between the Swans and the council have been under way for a long time, and a deal now looks all but imminent.
Council leader Rob Stewart said it would be beneficial for all concerned.
“We believe it strikes the right balance between the needs of the council and the needs of the sports clubs to further develop, helping build on their fantastic achievements over the last decade or so,” he said. “For the first time ever, the council would receive guaranteed rental income from the stadium, which represents a fair return for taxpayers. The council would also get a share of any stadium naming rights revenue in future.”
Chris Pearlman, Swansea City’s chief operating officer, said: “We’ve always looked at the big picture. Under the old agreement, Swansea City did not see any direct revenue from the Liberty Stadium’s operations. The new agreement would allow us to be more active in exploring the likes of stadium expansion, naming rights, sponsorship, catering revenue and enhancing supporters’ match-day experiences.”
Mr Pearlman said the plan was to get an up-to-date assessment of demand for seats, including hospitality, how much that would cost in expanding the ground and what return it would bring.
At that point, he said, the club could go out to market for naming rights partners, preferably with architect’s designs.
The stadium currently holds around 20,500 supporters, and Mr Pearlman said it was too early to say how many more might be accommodated.
Asked if stadium expansion was dependent on the Swans staying in the top flight, he said: “To stay in the Premier League we need to do it. It’s a massive source of potential revenue that we are not tapping into. It’s the next generation of fans that can’t get in now because there aren’t enough seats available.”
Mr Pearlman said he was very aware of the club’s current position, and said a phased approach to any stadium expansion would be the appropriate one.
Communities in Swansea are also set to benefit, thanks to a commitment by the Swans to fund the construction of new all-weather pitches in the county.
Mr Pearlman said: “Together we agreed that, beyond the fixed economics of our new lease arrangement, the football club would make an additional commitment in the form of 3G pitches. We are committed to fund the construction of two 3G pitches every five years that the public will have access to.”
The Liberty Stadium is currently run by a tripartite agreement between the council, the Swans and the Ospreys – all of whom have representation on the Swansea Stadium Management Company.