I think you needed a :Whoosh: smilie at the end of that post HT!
I'm not in a mocking mood today
I think you needed a :Whoosh: smilie at the end of that post HT!
Found one...
View attachment 47340
The White area at the South end of the stadium represents a large expanse of roughly South facing space that could have been covered in photovoltaic cells without affecting the light getting to the pitch. I'm sure solar tech is now able to provide flat coverings of cells without the need for those square blocks you see on houses nowadays.
Because the renewable energy available is rubbish, and loss making?Considering the stadium was only built just over two years ago I cannot understand why there was never any renewable energy included within the plans for the stadium.
Indeed they are. We are so so lucky that TB is a fan, a fan prepared to bank-roll the club. We'll be forever in his debt.a 'gift' to the people of Brighton and Hove, and fans of their football club, some of whom are ungrateful scrotes.
Looks like a good area for solar panels to me too. Other methods of renewable energy that could be used at the stadium and thus save the Albion money are:
Air Source Heat Pumps
Ground Source Heat Pumps
Wind Turbine
Plus there is micro-generation technology too:
Micro CHP
I don't think anyone of Bloom's obvious intelligence would invest in a football club to make money, he has invested to make sure the Club is in a healthy state in the future. The only problem with the benefactor approach is it works fine as long as (a) Bloom is in good financial state and (b) he continues to love the Club. Blooms has already admitted that he has made a financial commitment bigger then he would have liked to owing to the financial crisis.
The other worry is the size of our debts, there's no chance that Bloom will ever see that money back, Premier League or no. As a professional gambler, however, I'm sure Bloom has weighed these odds up and found that they are long, even for us to make it to the Premier League what with teams coming down with parachute payments . He wouldn't have gone in to this expecting to make his money back.
It is clear that if Bloom wanted to make money there would have been a number of sounder investments to put his (what must be approaching) £150m in.
I do know there are other investment projects that are being looked at which will make money for Bloom/BHAFC linked with the Stadium all of that should come clear in coming months.
Wind turbines are expensive and not cost effective.
This is why Bloom champions the FFP, otherwise he would be sure to lose money and would be forced to sell. He hasn't got a bottomless money pit and losing £8-£20m a year is unsustainable no matter how well he may be.
He will always get his money back for the club and the stadium so it is just controlling the losses with breaking even would be the perfect scenario.
Will be interesting to hear of these other projects you mention, are they outside Falmer?
I also feel that Bloom will be able to get his money back long term should he want to.
I don't think so. Art, rare books etc are appreciating assets and therefore can be sold in an active market. A sports stadium in the Sussex Downs has no such benefit to a rich person.
Also remember that even under FFP Bloom is subsidising the club to the tune of £5-6 million a year.
Abramovic bought Chelsea, an established Premier League club, for £17 million.
Do you think that anyone would give TB £150 million for the Albion?
What I think is largely irrelevant. I did not think anyone would want to buy Championship team Hull for £40m, Andy Carroll for £50m, Crystal Palace (less all capital including ground) for £9m, Adam Virgo for £1.5m etc etc but someone did. I'll say no....and most likely be proved wrong like I often am in football. I really am not a good judge of such things.
BBC states the deal cost him £140 million.
Tony Bloom didn't put £150 million into the Albion to make money, he did it because he is a local lad and loves the club. If you or I had that type of resource I expect we would do the same. The reward TB gets is not financial, it is the pleasure of seeing the Albion do well on the pitch, and the KUDOS of knowing that he does done an amazing feat for the fans and the area.
Every time I see the Amex it still makes my jaw drop, can't say that with some of the soulless boxes that many teams play in. Just a shame that the atmosphere is a bit 'meh' most of the time, but that is due to an ageing spectator base and all seater stadia, like most other clubs at a similar level.
It will be there in the long term if he wants it back.