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Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Just noticed this on the government petition website. An effort to stop the American billionaire owner of Fulham grabbing the National Stadium and using it for his own ends. Anyone who feels like me that it shouldnt be sold to him can click on this link and add their details. It was renovated using 'our' public money and National Lottery funds.
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/219222
Pass it on to other people as well if you can.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Will the money they make off it be invested back into grass roots football though? Seems a better use of it than a stadium that’s used 10% of the year.
Wasn’t old Wembley privately owned as well?
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
dml1954
Just noticed this on the government petition website. An effort to stop the American billionaire owner of Fulham grabbing the National Stadium and using it for his own ends. Anyone who feels like me that it shouldnt be sold to him can click on this link and add their details. It was renovated using 'our' public money and National Lottery funds.
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/219222
Pass it on to other people as well if you can.
Surely you mean England's National Stadium?
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Who cares what the English FA do with their stadium?
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Will city benefit either way? Are we full members of the (English) FA now?
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
Father Dougal
Will city benefit either way? Are we full members of the (English) FA now?
Should you only oppose something if the outcome benefits you personally?
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
tomm
Who cares what the English FA do with their stadium?
This
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
Croesy Blue
Should you only oppose something if the outcome benefits you personally?
Just wondering what the answer is. My gut says I don’t care at all who owns Wembley- but any reason why I should?
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
The old Wembley was privately owned but was badly neglected and fell into serious disrepair, which is one of the reasons why it was redeveloped. The stadium was totally rebuilt using hundreds of millions of pounds of tax payers money and ordinary peoples money from the National Lottery and none of this money will be repaid if it is sold to Shahid Khan. The money raised will line the pockets of the FA as well as some of it being used to spread into 'grass roots football' or so the FA say anyway. Every ordinary football fan in the UK should be concerned by this man buying the stadium because basically he can do what he likes with it then and many people dont trust him to preserve it. It is an iconic stadium which should hold a place in the hearts of everyone who loves football. Some of Citys most memorable occasions in the last 120 years have taken place there (FA Cup finals and semi-final, Play off final, Carling Cup Final). God we won the cup there in 1927!. It is a place that every footballer in the UK wants to play at as well. Like it or not Wales doesnt have a National Football Stadium currently, so to argue that Wembley is not Welsh, so why should anyone care, misses the point. Didn't you all grow up like I did wanting to go there and experience it and wonder at the occasion of the Cup Final. Don't we all still want to go and watch City play there again ?. Its a no brainer for me. Money shouldnt always be allowed to win.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Quote:
Originally Posted by
tomm
Who cares what the English FA do with their stadium?
We play in the English League pyramid system and to get to play at Wembley is the aim of playing in the FA and other cup competitions, so we should all care about it.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Who ever wants to buy Wembley stadium would be doing the English FA a favor. Shockingly soulless stadium with no character, which was built for the cooperate sponsers with little thought about the fans. Probably the worst stadium I've been to for a football fans experience.... And it cost over a billion pound to build.... crazy. Doesn't come remotely close to the Cardiff national stadium, for a great day out experience
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
Silures
Who ever wants to buy Wembley stadium would be doing the English FA a favor. Shockingly soulless stadium with no character, which was built for the cooperate sponsers with little thought about the fans. Probably the worst stadium I've been to for a football fans experience.... And it cost over a billion pound to build.... crazy. Doesn't come remotely close to the Cardiff national stadium, for a great day out experience
I agree I've been there 4 times and there's feck all there
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Silures
Who ever wants to buy Wembley stadium would be doing the English FA a favor. Shockingly soulless stadium with no character, which was built for the cooperate sponsers with little thought about the fans. Probably the worst stadium I've been to for a football fans experience.... And it cost over a billion pound to build.... crazy. Doesn't come remotely close to the Cardiff national stadium, for a great day out experience
It wasnt a soulless stadium when City took 35000 there and almost beat Liverpool in the Carling Cup final. Nor was it soulless when we beat Barnsley and lost to Portsmouth in the FA Cup. The atmosphere in the ground and overall experience was excellent at all of them. If stadiums were graded by the quality of their surroundings then no one would ever go to any of them around the country. What National Stadium are you referring to in Cardiff ? - the one owned and run by the WRU, which is a Rugby ground in case you hadn't noticed and for many years the WRU wouldnt let football have anything to do with it, until they decided they needed the money that is. Wembley is a stadium that all players and most fans still aspire to go to, which says it all for me.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
jamieccfc
This
These appear to be very narrow minded opinions based on nationalistic viewpoints which take no account of the history and tradition of the game in Britain. If Shahid Khan tried to buy CCS and turn it into an American Football stadium, I dare say you would have rather more to say about that. City play in the English League and English Cup systems.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
dml1954
These appear to be very narrow minded opinions based on nationalistic viewpoints which take no account of the history and tradition of the game in Britain. If Shahid Khan tried to buy CCS and turn it into an American Football stadium, I dare say you would have rather more to say about that. City play in the English League and English Cup systems.
Give up mate. It’s like trying to educate pork!
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
tomm
Who cares what the English FA do with their stadium?
:thumbup:
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
dml1954
It wasnt a soulless stadium when City took 35000 there and almost beat Liverpool in the Carling Cup final. Nor was it soulless when we beat Barnsley and lost to Portsmouth in the FA Cup. The atmosphere in the ground and overall experience was excellent at all of them. If stadiums were graded by the quality of their surroundings then no one would ever go to any of them around the country. What National Stadium are you referring to in Cardiff ? - the one owned and run by the WRU, which is a Rugby ground in case you hadn't noticed and for many years the WRU wouldnt let football have anything to do with it, until they decided they needed the money that is. Wembley is a stadium that all players and most fans still aspire to go to, which says it all for me.
Will selling the stadium mean that the FA Cup, League Cup and Play Offs will, be played elsewhere?
Re- surroundings, every fan I've spoken to who attended the football Cup finals at the Welsh Rugby Stadium said it was a better experience than the ones they've attended at the new Wembley.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
dml1954
We play in the English League pyramid system and to get to play at Wembley is the aim of playing in the FA and other cup competitions, so we should all care about it.
Didn't devalue any of the competitions when the play-offs and the cup finals were played down here so struggling to see your point.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Quote:
Originally Posted by
dml1954
The old Wembley was privately owned but was badly neglected and fell into serious disrepair, which is one of the reasons why it was redeveloped. The stadium was totally rebuilt using hundreds of millions of pounds of tax payers money and ordinary peoples money from the National Lottery and none of this money will be repaid if it is sold to Shahid Khan. The money raised will line the pockets of the FA as well as some of it being used to spread into 'grass roots football' or so the FA say anyway. Every ordinary football fan in the UK should be concerned by this man buying the stadium because basically he can do what he likes with it then and many people dont trust him to preserve it. It is an iconic stadium which should hold a place in the hearts of everyone who loves football. Some of Citys most memorable occasions in the last 120 years have taken place there (FA Cup finals and semi-final, Play off final, Carling Cup Final). God we won the cup there in 1927!. It is a place that every footballer in the UK wants to play at as well. Like it or not Wales doesnt have a National Football Stadium currently, so to argue that Wembley is not Welsh, so why should anyone care, misses the point. Didn't you all grow up like I did wanting to go there and experience it and wonder at the occasion of the Cup Final. Don't we all still want to go and watch City play there again ?. Its a no brainer for me. Money shouldnt always be allowed to win.
I thought as part of the agreement to sell, is that the original government and lottery funding used to build the stadium would be paid back in full from the proceeds of the sale? Also wasn’t the funding predominantly loans secured by the FA, which they have been paying back and there is about £150m outstanding?
You would imagine that any deal to sell would have caveats that all cup finals, playoff finals etc would have to be played at Wembley. It would also make sense for any stadium owner to have more games there as a way of maximising revenue. They would also retain the rights to club Wembley revenue for any football matches. Add to that if, and it’s a big if(and Wales won’t see any of it) the FA invest in 3G pitches up and down the country, then I don’t see the issue. It’s not like the FA has owned the stadium for any long periods of time anyway.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
How many complained and petitioned when the government spnkd over 800 million of lottery and taxpayers money on what’s now called the O2 arena
Sell the thing quickly so the taxpayers don’t have to kept putting their hands in their pockets to support the lavish lifestyles of consultants and designers who possess a rare skill at squeezing the juices out of the public sector
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
The FA got stung when construction costs for Wembley ballooned. It was more than they can afford and they'll never make that money back just from selling tickets. They should be allowed to sell it.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
People say it’s a soulless bowl but whenever we’ve been there I think the atmosphere has been incredible. It’s not in the best location but it’s in the same place the old stadium was.
It looks dead for internationals but every playoff or cup final when it’s full seems decent to me.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
sneggyblubird
Didn't devalue any of the competitions when the play-offs and the cup finals were played down here so struggling to see your point.
At a rugby stadium owned by a group if people who hate football but tolerate it because it rakes in money for them. They are just as likely to turn round and stop football being played there as carry on with the present arrangement. Why should football line the pockets of the WRU. It was alright as a temporary arrangement whilst Wembley was being rebuilt but the 'home' of the FA Cup (and other cup competitions) and play offs is Wembley and always has been. Players and fans alike aspire to appear there. Obviously not you or a number of others on here though.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
light up the darkness
How many complained and petitioned when the government spnkd over 800 million of lottery and taxpayers money on what’s now called the O2 arena
Sell the thing quickly so the taxpayers don’t have to kept putting their hands in their pockets to support the lavish lifestyles of consultants and designers who possess a rare skill at squeezing the juices out of the public sector
Apart from the £150m put in to redevelop it, the tax payers don't contribute anything to its running costs - it is self funding.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Quote:
Originally Posted by
dml1954
These appear to be very narrow minded opinions based on nationalistic viewpoints which take no account of the history and tradition of the game in Britain. If Shahid Khan tried to buy CCS and turn it into an American Football stadium, I dare say you would have rather more to say about that. City play in the English League and English Cup systems.
Those days are long gone. If course I would have a different opinion if it was CCS but I couldn't give 2 monkey's about Wembley I actually think England should play all around the country same with wales and actually give the northerners a chance
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
Stavross1927
I thought as part of the agreement to sell, is that the original government and lottery funding used to build the stadium would be paid back in full from the proceeds of the sale? Also wasn’t the funding predominantly loans secured by the FA, which they have been paying back and there is about £150m outstanding?
You would imagine that any deal to sell would have caveats that all cup finals, playoff finals etc would have to be played at Wembley. It would also make sense for any stadium owner to have more games there as a way of maximising revenue. They would also retain the rights to club Wembley revenue for any football matches. Add to that if, and it’s a big if(and Wales won’t see any of it) the FA invest in 3G pitches up and down the country, then I don’t see the issue. It’s not like the FA has owned the stadium for any long periods of time anyway.
No mention has been made of any of the money from the sale being given back to public or lottery funds. The money will be kept by the FA to use 'as they see fit' i.e. line their own pockets and fund the lifestyles of their executives. Some might filter down the system but experience should tell everyone that it will be a miniscule amount compared to what they keep to fund their own organisation. I wouldn't trust the FA with anything.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Not bothered about Wembley. It has completely lost its mistique since the development.
It used to be a really significant moment in a player's career if they got to play there. There are probably great players who never managed to in years gone by.
These days it is used far too much, the entire premier league have played there and fa cup semi finals for years.
It's not special any more, it's just a big boring stadium in the arsehole of London.
I'm no bothered about Fulham using it as they won't, it is far too big for them.
I do think that if it is sold off the public money should be repaid though.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Quote:
Originally Posted by
dml1954
No mention has been made of any of the money from the sale being given back to public or lottery funds. The money will be kept by the FA to use 'as they see fit' i.e. line their own pockets and fund the lifestyles of their executives. Some might filter down the system but experience should tell everyone that it will be a miniscule amount compared to what they keep to fund their own organisation. I wouldn't trust the FA with anything.
Apart from running Wembley Stadium? Which is what the petition is about.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
dml1954
Apart from the £150m put in to redevelop it, the tax payers don't contribute anything to its running costs - it is self funding.
Spoilsport!!
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
Harry Monk
Apart from running Wembley Stadium? Which is what the petition is about.
The thing is that I trust Shahid Khan less than the FA. At least the FA are accountable for what they do to some extent and their remit is to run Wembley and football in this country whereas Khan is purely a businessman with a finger in many pies and once he has bought it, no one would have any control over what he does with it.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Quote:
Originally Posted by
dml1954
The thing is that I trust Shahid Khan less than the FA. At least the FA are accountable for what they do to some extent and their remit is to run Wembley and football in this country whereas Khan is purely a businessman with a finger in many pies and once he has bought it, no one would have any control over what he does with it.
What’s he worst he can do? He won’t stop having cup finals etc played at the stadium as it cuts off a form off revenue.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
The only public funding to redevelop Wembley was £120 million from the lottery which was swallowed up by the cost of demolition and land purchases. The remaining funding - nearly £700 milllion - was from loans. Given that any money raised from selling Wembley will be ploughed back into grass roots football I don’t see a problem as supporting participation in sport is part of the national lottery’s remit.
And besides it is the English national stadium so I don’t care a great deal. As long as the FA cup final, league cup final and playoff finals are held there it will make no difference to us as Cardiff City fans.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
Harry Monk
So in other words they advocate pandering to the ego of a megalomanic billionaire american who could allow all the main games to be played there but on the other hand could decide at some point not to or even to demolish/redevelop it and there would be little, if anything, anyone could do. They also ignore the play off final games that are played there when calculating its usage and these games give lower league players a chance to play at the National Stadium and are very well supported by fans who enjoy the day out and overall experience. The article looks at it purely from a financial point of view and that's not the point of the petition, its about history and tradition which Khan knows nothing about.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Quote:
Originally Posted by
dml1954
So in other words they advocate pandering to the ego of a megalomanic billionaire american who could allow all the main games to be played there but on the other hand could decide at some point not to or even to demolish/redevelop it and there would be little, if anything, anyone could do. They also ignore the play off final games that are played there when calculating its usage and these games give lower league players a chance to play at the National Stadium and are very well supported by fans who enjoy the day out and overall experience. The article looks at it purely from a financial point of view and that's not the point of the petition, its about history and tradition which Khan knows nothing about.
The stadium is about 10 years old! Where was the history and tradition when the FA decided to demolish the old Wembley and built a new stadium? (purely for financial purposes)
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Only 31 have signed so far:hehe:
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Quote:
Originally Posted by
dml1954
So in other words they advocate pandering to the ego of a megalomanic billionaire american who could allow all the main games to be played there but on the other hand could decide at some point not to or even to demolish/redevelop it and there would be little, if anything, anyone could do. They also ignore the play off final games that are played there when calculating its usage and these games give lower league players a chance to play at the National Stadium and are very well supported by fans who enjoy the day out and overall experience. The article looks at it purely from a financial point of view and that's not the point of the petition, its about history and tradition which Khan knows nothing about.
I think you missed the bit where it said the FA would not be able to fulfil its role as it would be cash strapped if it didn't sell the stadium.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
Couldn't care less where FA Cup finals etc are played, there are plenty of historic stadiums in the country and the Millennium Stadium wasn't a bad stand in
If anything Wembley is overused, the National League playoff final between Tranmere and Boreham Wood was played at Wembley FFS! Why? Why not somewhere like Stamford Bridge where they might actually fill it?
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
Heisenberg
The stadium is about 10 years old! Where was the history and tradition when the FA decided to demolish the old Wembley and built a new stadium? (purely for financial purposes)
The old stadium was outdated and in serious disrepair and was on the point of being closed down, so repairing it was not an option. Funny how most people from abroad hold it in awe and want to go there to watch or play football but some people over here cant be bothered to support it.
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Re: Petition to try to stop the FA selling Wembley
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Originally Posted by
Llanedeyrnblue
Only 31 have signed so far:hehe:
I didnt start the petition. I was just asking if anyone on here wanted to sign it. I had a feeling that I might be wasting my time because quite a few people on this board couldn't care less about the wider picture and history of the game. I know what Wembley meant to me as a child and still means to me now. I am Welsh and proud of it but have family and many friends in England. The world doesnt stop at the Severn Bridge like some people would have us believe.