Financial impact of Leeds United's Elland Road expansion plans laid bare
More than a month has passed since Leeds United announced their ambitious new plans to improve Elland Road. Their aim is to increase the capacity of the iconic ground from 37,645 to 53,000
The Whites hope to "greatly" improve general admission and hospitality facilities, making the necessary changes with minimal disruption. It is understood owners 49ers Enterprises have already committed £10m to the redevelopment of the stadium.
But finance expert Dan Plumley says the Championship club's revenue streams could be impacted in the short-term if stands are closed at Elland Road during the process. He told MOT Leeds News: “You’ve got to look at it through the lens of short-term pain for long-term gain.
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“If you do have to close a stand off, there are a few assumptions in there around how much that might cost. From their most recent set of accounts in a Championship season, Leeds were generating around £1.3million per matchday. Not all stands are equal but let’s say conservatively, if you close one stand you might lose a couple of hundred to £300,000 per matchday.
“That might cost you in the region of a few million over the course of a season, but the upshot going the other way, is you’re probably looking at around a £10million uplift in matchday revenue over the course of a season after the expansion.
“You’ll be getting that every season and it then becomes an easy numbers calculation to go, we might take a bit of a hit for a year that could cost us a cost us a couple of million, but in the long run, we’re going to get that back and more every single year.
“It’s part of the narrative for sure, but you would budget that in as a club and know where you were at with the finances. As I say, you’ve got to be looking at the long term and what it will generate you from that expanded capacity in the future.”