Capitalising on Scottish Cup win with new community stadium
Multi-sports complex, with Aberdeen FC as anchor tenant, pivotal to beach regeneration
Aberdeen FC will pay its fair share of new stadium

The following op-ed, written by our Chairman Dave Cormack, appeared in the P&J this morning.

The scenes at the parade to celebrate our Scottish Cup win demonstrated the positive impact Aberdeen FC can have on our city region. In one single day, the Club brought tens of thousands of people into the city centre, regardless of bus gates and LEZ! The buzz was palpable; smiling faces everywhere and the welcome sound of ringing tills in cafes, bars, shops and restaurants.

It’s often remarked upon that when our football team is doing well, so too is our city. The incalculable, but very tangible, feel-good factor has been building in the last few seasons as the Club improves on and off the pitch, with a significant increase in season ticket holders, enhanced fan engagement and match-day experiences resulting in several Pittodrie sell-outs. This, in turn, has led to a positive knock-on effect for local businesses.

As we came back down to earth after the euphoria of that historic win, we heard a clear call from all quarters, including supporters, politicians and business leaders, that we must capitalise on it with a new stadium for a new era.

When the Council initially approached us about a new stadium at the beach, we were excited about the potential for it to be the catalyst for amazing community sports and leisure facilities, new events and economic benefits for the whole city region.

Without significant infrastructure investment in facilities that attract and retain people, Aberdeen will lose out on the tens of thousands of renewable energy jobs being created.

With the current job losses and decline in our oil and gas industry, our city is sleep-walking into a Ravenscraig or Sheffield type economic crisis.

The stated political aim is for Aberdeen to shift from Europe’s oil and gas capital to the renewable energy capital of the world. But, let’s face it, right now Aberdeen wouldn’t even win that title in the UK. Areas like Teeside are well ahead of us in terms of infrastructure investment.

A number of oil service companies that are transitioning to renewable energy have told me that they are highly likely to move elsewhere. Is it any wonder when our citizens have to travel to Dundee for the nearest leisure facility of any note?

Companies want to see what cities have to offer their employees and families. Aberdeen has a phenomenal asset with its beachfront. A playpark at the cost of £55 million and the Broadhill revival are very welcome, but this type of public realm on its own doesn’t create jobs or revenues – instead they bring additional operational costs for the taxpayer in upkeep and maintenance.

The vision for a new community stadium with a multi-sport and leisure complex was all about the catalytic impact of a centrepiece – the anchor economic driver that generates the jobs and revenues to deliver a return on the cost of regeneration. An independent study, funded jointly by the Club and the Council, revealed that the economic uplift from such a facility would be £1billion over 50 years.

But this vision has stalled and needs to progress if we want to create something special, not just for our Club but for the whole city region and all its citizens.

This is why we must take a fresh approach. We want to bring politicians of all parties, business leaders and other stakeholders together in a shared ambition for the city to deliver a community stadium along with best-in-class sports and leisure facilities that can be enjoyed by all, that will attract and retain people, creating jobs and prosperity.

I am increasingly frustrated about the myth that the Club expects the Council to fund a new stadium. The Club will pay its fair share. This is not about the Council picking up the whole tab for a new stadium for the Club. This is about the opportunity to use the Club’s unique influence and ability to catalyse delivery of a community sports and leisure complex that can rival anything other cities can offer and more.

It’s about delivering a stadium and environment around it that has multiple uses, used every day of the week, not just for football matches every second weekend during the season.

It’s about the economies of scale that can be achieved by adjacent community sports and leisure facilities.

And it could also be about using the Club’s state-of-the-art customer engagement systems and processes for ticketing and promoting major events to transform loss-making recreation and sports facilities such as the Beach Ballroom and those run by Sport Aberdeen. Not to mention, augmenting the work of our community trust in successfully using football to deliver positive social outcomes, particularly among young people, in education, physical and mental well-being.

After the success of the Tall Ships, Aberdeen is searching for the next big attraction that will excite citizens and bring money into the city. Imagine if the new stadium and facilities enabled the Club to deliver something akin to the previous International Football Festival, but on steroids?

Our friends at Swedish club, BK Hacken, organise the world’s largest youth football tournament, the Gothia Cup, every year which attracts thousands of people to Gothenburg, significantly boosting tourism and local business. There is no reason why we couldn’t successfully host a similar event, every year.

With a new community stadium, we could host a myriad of international sporting events and outdoor concerts including matches for the 2035 women’s world cup. The possibilities are endless; the return on investment exceptional.

To be clear, the Club has been talking for years with both the current and previous city leaders about a community stadium that the Club would lease for 99 years. With the Council able to borrow money for capital regeneration projects at interest rates, as low as 1-1.5%, it makes complete economic sense to deliver this vision and get the anchor project underway.

As part of a 99-year lease, the Club is prepared to contribute upfront the significant value of Pittodrie and the surrounding land, providing substantial income to the Council, as well as the Club paying for the stadium’s upkeep. And this is on top of, at least, a £1 billion economic uplift to the city.

There are countless examples, up and down the country, of investments like this, not least of which is the major redevelopment project around Old Trafford. With support from the UK Government, Trafford Council and Manchester United will create a world-class football destination and community district with plans to revitalise Trafford Wharfside and create new homes and jobs. This is true levelling up – using public funds to pump prime regeneration with significant return in terms of economic and social progress.

So, my plea is for everyone to get on board with the ambition and find the political will to make this happen for the benefit of Aberdeen and to provide future Aberdonians with a city to be proud of.

There’s no time to waste, let’s do this – together.

FCSB train at Pittodrie