Post by QPR Report on Oct 29, 2009 6:38:24 GMT
That's how I feel about the suggestions re naming Loftus Road. Although others have disagreed. (And of course is it Loftus Road? or Rangers Stadium? or Briatore Park Avenue or Paladini's Place?
The Guardian
Renaming St James' Park is heresy, says Freddy Shepherd• 'There are some things money cannot buy,' says Shepherd• Newcastle and St James' Park are synonymous
Louise Taylor
Freddy Shepherd has voiced his horror at Mike Ashley's decision to auction the naming rights to St James' Park.
When, late last night, Ashley announced Newcastle United was no longer for sale and that Chris Hughton had been confirmed as the club's manager, the owner also declared he would be seeking to sell the rights to rename the ground. While Newcastle fans have mixed feeling about Hughton's appointment they are virtually unanimous in their outrage regarding a possible stadium sponsorship.
"I suppose nothing surprises me about the current regime but the fans will be horrified, angry and upset," said Shepherd, Newcastle's former chairman. "They have had to put up with a lot in recent months. This is just another blow."
Shepherd revealed that, in 1997, he and his co-directors had taken just "one or two" minutes to veto the idea of even discussing marketing the naming rights.
Ashley, the club's current owner, has very different ideas and sees lining up a similar deal as the chance to raise about £5m a season towards player purchases. In contrast, Shepherd believes selling the right to change St James' Park's name is heresy. "I appreciate we are living in a commercial world," he said. "But there are some things money can't buy.
"St James' Park is one of the most famous stadia not just in Europe but the world. You can go anywhere on this planet and everyone knows St James' Park is the home of Newcastle United. The two are synonymous."
Indeed as St James' is such an evocative address it is possible a branding specialist may advise a sponsor to compromise and tweak rather than entirely alter the stadium name but Shepherd remains appalled.
"We had the chance to change the name of the ground when I was chairman," he said. "It was just after flotation, big-name companies were falling over themselves to get involved in football and Newcastle were then right up there with the Manchester Uniteds, Liverpools and Arsenals.
"We were offered something like £3m for a five-year deal but the money could have been 10 times that and I would still not have been interested. The decision not to go down that road was one of the easiest we ever made as a board. I can recall raising the subject with my fellow directors, recommending we reject the idea and within a minute or two, they had agreed and moved on to the next item on the agenda.
"I just can't imagine St James' Park being called anything else. Whatever next? Why don't they just go the whole hog and change the name of the club itself?"
With the collapse of the local businessman Barry Moat's attempt to buy Newcastle for £80m, Ashley has pledged to invest a further £20m with an unspecified percentage of that sum being made available to Hughton during the January transfer window.
Yet even the promise of such largesse failed to pacify furious fans yesterday. Colin Whittle of the Newcastle United Supporters Trust, typified a militant mood. "Now, as his latest slap in the face to the fans and the city as a whole, Mike Ashley wants to sell off the famous name of St James' Park," he said. "Everything he does now seems calculated to thumb a nose at his customers."
Despite Hughton's feat in steering Newcastle to the top of the Championship in his previous caretaker capacity, Neil Mitchell, NUST's chair, was underwhelmed by his promotion: "Chris Hughton's appointment shows Mike Ashley continues to call the wrong shots," he said. "We still await a manager with a proven record."
The Guardian
Renaming St James' Park is heresy, says Freddy Shepherd• 'There are some things money cannot buy,' says Shepherd• Newcastle and St James' Park are synonymous
Louise Taylor
Freddy Shepherd has voiced his horror at Mike Ashley's decision to auction the naming rights to St James' Park.
When, late last night, Ashley announced Newcastle United was no longer for sale and that Chris Hughton had been confirmed as the club's manager, the owner also declared he would be seeking to sell the rights to rename the ground. While Newcastle fans have mixed feeling about Hughton's appointment they are virtually unanimous in their outrage regarding a possible stadium sponsorship.
"I suppose nothing surprises me about the current regime but the fans will be horrified, angry and upset," said Shepherd, Newcastle's former chairman. "They have had to put up with a lot in recent months. This is just another blow."
Shepherd revealed that, in 1997, he and his co-directors had taken just "one or two" minutes to veto the idea of even discussing marketing the naming rights.
Ashley, the club's current owner, has very different ideas and sees lining up a similar deal as the chance to raise about £5m a season towards player purchases. In contrast, Shepherd believes selling the right to change St James' Park's name is heresy. "I appreciate we are living in a commercial world," he said. "But there are some things money can't buy.
"St James' Park is one of the most famous stadia not just in Europe but the world. You can go anywhere on this planet and everyone knows St James' Park is the home of Newcastle United. The two are synonymous."
Indeed as St James' is such an evocative address it is possible a branding specialist may advise a sponsor to compromise and tweak rather than entirely alter the stadium name but Shepherd remains appalled.
"We had the chance to change the name of the ground when I was chairman," he said. "It was just after flotation, big-name companies were falling over themselves to get involved in football and Newcastle were then right up there with the Manchester Uniteds, Liverpools and Arsenals.
"We were offered something like £3m for a five-year deal but the money could have been 10 times that and I would still not have been interested. The decision not to go down that road was one of the easiest we ever made as a board. I can recall raising the subject with my fellow directors, recommending we reject the idea and within a minute or two, they had agreed and moved on to the next item on the agenda.
"I just can't imagine St James' Park being called anything else. Whatever next? Why don't they just go the whole hog and change the name of the club itself?"
With the collapse of the local businessman Barry Moat's attempt to buy Newcastle for £80m, Ashley has pledged to invest a further £20m with an unspecified percentage of that sum being made available to Hughton during the January transfer window.
Yet even the promise of such largesse failed to pacify furious fans yesterday. Colin Whittle of the Newcastle United Supporters Trust, typified a militant mood. "Now, as his latest slap in the face to the fans and the city as a whole, Mike Ashley wants to sell off the famous name of St James' Park," he said. "Everything he does now seems calculated to thumb a nose at his customers."
Despite Hughton's feat in steering Newcastle to the top of the Championship in his previous caretaker capacity, Neil Mitchell, NUST's chair, was underwhelmed by his promotion: "Chris Hughton's appointment shows Mike Ashley continues to call the wrong shots," he said. "We still await a manager with a proven record."
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