QPR flash new stadium!!!!!

[stanistheman]

Been there and I agree it is a lovely lovely stadium with superb views all round. And in a Utopia I'd love us to have enough proper fans to fill such a stadium week in week out & have the place rocking. However, we don't. We have about 20k fans tops, with about 15-17k attending matches on a regular basis. Now, there are probably some that do't go due to the ground & it's facilities / condition (although I personally think this is a very poor excuse if so) but not many.

I can see the point of view of people wanting the big shiny stadium, what with the massively increased revenue brought in, club growing etc etc, but I'm speaking here solely as a selfish individual fan and what we would experience on match days. We would no way ever fill 40k - not without literally half being away fans & tourists. Do we want the comfy seats & views at that cost? We would either be a Coventry (soulless empty ground) or a Foolham (filled with tourists). We give Foolham aload of stick about their fanbase & it's makeup, yet if this 40k proposed stadium goes ahead, we have a very good chance of becoming exactly the same. IMO of course.

I don't think we should be building anything more than a 25k seater tbh. Then, as time goes on and we maybe build up a bigger actual fan base (what with the younger generation being enticed in from an an early age) maybe extend further. But I just feel that making such a jump in stadium size so quickly is risking our current "proper" fan base becoming detached from the club altogether and replaced with tourists, businessmen & kids waving flags.

There are some fair points in the above including building a 40K stadium, but I think there are plenty of fans who dont attend games frequently because of the old stadiums. Look at the increase in gates of many clubs who have built new stadiums like Southampton, Reading Stoke Sunderland Middlesbro Leicester and now Brighton. new stadiums and some success Premier League football attract more fans.

I would like to aim for a 30-35,000 seater stadium with room to expand, but as already posted on here, this satdium is around 7 years away. By the time it gets built QPR could be back in the Premier League and be doing a lot better than they did last time around.

It didn't take that long for Chelsea's gates to grow from an average of 25k to 40k. Success will bring in the fans.

I don't see why moving to a new stadium should mean the current 'proper' fan base should become detached from the club. Especially given that it is still local to the current site.

The problem imo though is that 7 years could be too late and QPR could be back in the Premier League and struggling again because they will still be stuck in this 18,000 capacity stadium. This is something that many of us were saying should have been addressed by the previous owners, but they made sure that their matchday experience was great and stuff the rest.

[TW7R]

Agree completely with Matty's post. I think the 40k figure is absolutely ludicrous - there's no way we will fill that stadium. Should be 20-25k max, otherwise it will just be another one of those soulless Ricoh Arena-type grounds.

Love the way everyone uses Coventry as an example.

Why not use Hull, Cardiff, Brighton or Reading as examples?

Have a look at their attendances when they were in their previous grounds to what they get now, and tell me they havnt prospered since increasing their gates in some cases well over double.

Atmospheres too are arguably better (bar reading) so not sure where all this stuff about not filling a ground comes from. If its marketed well and you get the right people in, you gain support and grow. Look at Brighton now to what they were the last time we were in the same league. Who's gonna be taking the **** out of the others Mickey Mouse out of date ground now?

Gone from crowds of 4k or whatever it was to ST sales over 20k I think I read. Does the Samesex Arena resemble the cottage with a load of newbies? No

[lymehoop]

one of the best locations in London, will pay its way on concerts and that is the reason for the capacity

[The Godfather]

Agree completely with Matty's post. I think the 40k figure is absolutely ludicrous - there's no way we will fill that stadium. Should be 20-25k max, otherwise it will just be another one of those soulless Ricoh Arena-type grounds.

[brightonr]

Maybe the 40,000 seater could be designed so that some of it is hidden from view when not at capacity.

Or even with retractable stands with weight sensors that rise from the ground the fuller they get, therefore giving the impression that it is always full, whether we are playing Chelsea in the prem or Shrewsbury in the league cup.

Preferably with seats designed in such a way that would ensure we don't have to leave them when nature calls.

Now, is it my round or Ted's?

[MattyRangers]

No one is jumping quickly, 10 years at least before it is built.

You get to this time scale how? But that aside, what makes you think our fan base is going to increase at all between now the opening of this possible new stadium?

[Jeems]

No one is jumping quickly, 10 years at least before it is built.

[MattyRangers]

I do. I want a bigger and more comfortable stadium, with softer seats and better views (like the Emirates has). I imagine that there are 1000s more that also want that.

I guess it is hard for some fans to imagine why there aren't 1000s of QPR fans wanting to pay £40-75 every other week to watch QPR struggling to beat PL teams in an old, cramped, uncomfortable stadium with poor views from 1/3 of the seats not to mention the very poor standard of facilities like catering areas and toilets.

For those who have never been, I would recommend a visit to watch a game at the Emirates Stadium even if it is a League Cup tie.

Been there and I agree it is a lovely lovely stadium with superb views all round. And in a Utopia I'd love us to have enough proper fans to fill such a stadium week in week out & have the place rocking. However, we don't. We have about 20k fans tops, with about 15-17k attending matches on a regular basis. Now, there are probably some that do't go due to the ground & it's facilities / condition (although I personally think this is a very poor excuse if so) but not many.

I can see the point of view of people wanting the big shiny stadium, what with the massively increased revenue brought in, club growing etc etc, but I'm speaking here solely as a selfish individual fan and what we would experience on match days. We would no way ever fill 40k - not without literally half being away fans & tourists. Do we want the comfy seats & views at that cost? We would either be a Coventry (soulless empty ground) or a Foolham (filled with tourists). We give Foolham aload of stick about their fanbase & it's makeup, yet if this 40k proposed stadium goes ahead, we have a very good chance of becoming exactly the same. IMO of course.

I don't think we should be building anything more than a 25k seater tbh. Then, as time goes on and we maybe build up a bigger actual fan base (what with the younger generation being enticed in from an an early age) maybe extend further. But I just feel that making such a jump in stadium size so quickly is risking our current "proper" fan base becoming detached from the club altogether and replaced with tourists, businessmen & kids waving flags.

[stanistheman]

With a bit of on the field success, good marketing, local promotion and PL football, 40,000 is achievable. Won't all be Rangers mad, but may get a bit more like it over time.

Having seen some of the excuses for our lack of support though, I can categorically state that although I have missed several home games in over 40 years, not once was it because of the toilet facilities.

Maybe not due to the poor toilets, but I have stayed away due to discomfort in the seats (after a knee op) or chosen not to pay £30+ to buy one of the 1000s of restricted view seats.

[stanistheman]

[QUOTE=dave58;1134641]what like fulham ave gate of around 25.000 if lucky, established Prem team about the same size as us so why would we want a 40.000 stadia. we would have to take the Prem by storm win a few trophies, before all the hangers on and a new generation of Rs fan would swell our gates to over 30.000 even. and as another poster says do we want a load of fickle fans who change their teams just so they can support a winning team?[/QUOTE]

Sorry, but why don't we want them? They would be paying their money to watch and support the side thereby helping to fund the club to grow and prosper or are we a bunch of snobs who only want fans who live and breathe QPR, who were born into QPR supporting families?

[stanistheman]

With our ground being surrounded by 19,000 homes I think it's safe to say we would gain many new supporters.

In those new homes, there are likely to be families with kids, so you can probably guess at houising 76,000 people. Obviously not all will be football fans let alone QPR ones but I would guess at least 3,000 potential new ones, maybe more if it is to watch a reasonably successful PL side.

[stanistheman]

Begs the question do we want a stadium of fans that couldn't be bothered to turn up when we were losing but turn up for a flash new stadium?

I do. I want a bigger and more comfortable stadium, with softer seats and better views (like the Emirates has). I imagine that there are 1000s more that also want that.

I guess it is hard for some fans to imagine why there aren't 1000s of QPR fans wanting to pay £40-75 every other week to watch QPR struggling to beat PL teams in an old, cramped, uncomfortable stadium with poor views from 1/3 of the seats not to mention the very poor standard of facilities like catering areas and toilets.

For those who have never been, I would recommend a visit to watch a game at the Emirates Stadium even if it is a League Cup tie.

[brightonr]

With a bit of on the field success, good marketing, local promotion and PL football, 40,000 is achievable. Won't all be Rangers mad, but may get a bit more like it over time.

Having seen some of the excuses for our lack of support though, I can categorically state that although I have missed several home games in over 40 years, not once was it because of the toilet facilities.

[MYU]

Queen Park Rangers set to beat Chelsea to new stadium

Championship side in talks about building a new 40,000-seater arena

London: Championship club Queen Park Rangers have overtaken west London neighbours and Premier League giants Chelsea in the search for a new stadium.

http://gulfnews.com/sport/football/queen-park-rangers-set-to-beat-chelsea-to-new-stadium-1.1222560?

[Felt]

what like fulham ave gate of around 25.000 if lucky, established Prem team about the same size as us so why would we want a 40.000 stadia. we would have to take the Prem by storm win a few trophies, before all the hangers on and a new generation of Rs fan would swell our gates to over 30.000 even. and as another poster says do we want a load of fickle fans who change their teams just so they can support a winning team?

Re: the whole fickle fans thing. I guess it depends on whether you want the club to be small-time or big-time. I'm a bit torn on it myself.

As for actually making those numbers fickle fans or not, there's plenty of room to grow. The scum were doing 18k 20 years ago. By the time this stadium's built (which is at least 10 years away) we might well be on our way to 40k if we're in the Prem.