WengerDrome
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2: The WengerDrome Mr Wenger made it clear that the Arsenal he wanted could not continue with crowds of 38,000 – and he pushed for the new stadium. Indeed the playing of early European games at Wembley was part of the move towards the new stadium – proving beyond doubt that Arsenal could attract audiences of 75,000 for larger games. The great thing about the WengerDrome is that it was designed both as a wonderful arena in which to play football, and as a great place to watch. Wonderful grass, wonderful seats. It is noticeable that a club like Liverpool – the club that in terms of trophies won overshadowed Arsenal in the last 30 years of the 20th century – struggled to come to terms with building a new stadium, and eventually came up with a half-price version of the Drome supported by EU money on the grounds that Liverpool is an economically deprived area (their submission, not my statement). The concourses are huge compared with other grounds, and they are lit from without – compare with the miserable concourses and food centres at the Millennium Stadium for example. The grass is nurtured through allowing the wind to blow through (hence the design of the bowl) with added lighting being moved into position during the winter. The seats are the best in the game – as are the lines of site. Silver members who use their membership to move around the ground will tell you – where ever you go, you see perfectly. The stadium is financed over 25 years – but nothing as yet shows on the books from the profit of the sale of Highbury. At the moment (2006) Highbury shows as a loss – because of its development costs. No one is saying where the Highbury money goes – into the team or to pay off part of the mortgage, or a bit of each.
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