Evangelos Marinakis could ‘put his hand in his pocket’ to finance Nottingham Forest stadium expansion
Nottingham Forest could be set to undertake a huge stadium expansion at the City Ground.
As part of owner Evangelos Marinakis’s ambitious plans, Forest have been exploring their options to expand the City Ground for several years.
Forest received planning permission last June to demolish and rebuild the Peter Taylor Stand – increasing the stadium’s capacity from 30,000 to 35,000 – but those plans have since been shelved.
It has now been revealed Sean Dyche’s side have submitted plans to expand the City Ground’s capacity to around 52,500.
Forest are one of several Premier League clubs looking to increase their stadium capacity, with Manchester United, Newcastle United, Leeds United and Chelsea all currently exploring development projects.
Why Nottingham Forest stadium expansion will be ‘very expensive’
Former Man City financial adviser Stefan Borson exclusively told Football Insider Marinakis could “put his hand in his pocket” to finance Forest’s stadium expansion.
Marinakis has invested heavily in Forest since taking over the club in 2017.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Borson said: “I mean, it will make a big difference if they can sell the seats. I don’t know what the demand is like.
“Clearly, they’ve got to remain in the Premier League. They’re not going to sell 50,000 seats in the Championship, so they’ve got to stay in the Premier League.
“Those extra seats can generate a pretty significant amount of money and everything that goes with that, but these developments are also very expensive.
“You increase the debt, or the owner pays with equity, puts his hand in his pocket, and that makes a big difference.”
Why Nottingham Forest could face 50,000 seats ‘issue’
Borson insisted Forest could face an “issue” filling the City Ground if they increase the capacity to beyond 50,000.
“Look, it’s good for Nottingham Forest really to have a ground of that size,” said Borson.
“I just wonder whether there’s sufficient demand. If you look around the stadia this month, I know it’s cold, I know it’s winter, but there are a lot of empty seats around. It’s all through the league.
“It’s normal, but there is a tipping point where the cost of going to these games just doesn’t match with how many games there are, and so there’s oversupply and there isn’t sufficient demand. I think that is an issue with Nottingham Forest and 50,000 seats.”
Forest currently sit 17th in the Premier League table, but they are seven points above third-bottom West Ham.
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