Everton told to accept ‘£15m-a-year naming rights offer’
Everton have held talks about a naming rights deal for their new stadium as they prepare to move away from Goodison Park ahead of next season.
The Merseyside giants are set to spend more than £800million to complete the state-of-the-art facility on Bramley-Moore Dock despite it initially being projected to cost around £500million.
Everton have received offers to sponsor their new stadium, but they are yet to reach an agreement with any interested parties.
A test event saw 10,000 supporters pack into the stadium’s South Stand for an Everton Under-18s game last month, while 25,000 fans gathered for an Under-21s fixture on 23 March.
Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – insisted the Premier League side should accept a £10-15million offer for their stadium naming rights.
Wyness previously told Football Insider Dan Friedkin is set to become Everton chairman after the club’s owner was appointed as a director earlier this week.
Everton’s owners want to take a US approach towards matchdays at their new stadium to boost the club’s revenues.
Everton face naming rights blow after stadium reveal
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, Wyness admitted Everton’s new stadium may not be as attractive to potential investors as some of the London clubs’ grounds.
He told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “I suppose it’s a case of do you hang out for top dollar and just wait or do you take whatever you can right now?
“I would tend to be of the view that you establish a category right now that is of the right price. I think somewhere between £10-15million a year would be very valuable and the right price.
“I’m conscious of the fact that the Everton stadium, as attractive as it is, maybe it isn’t in the London market.
“Therefore, it isn’t going to get the publicity that a lot of the London stadiums will do around some of the big financial naming rights companies in London, so it’s got that sort of limit to its appeal.
“But I think the publicity it’s going to get for the next few years certainly means it’s going to be that £10-15million market.
“If they’re waiting for £20million, I think that would be wrong. I think you should go and take a naming rights sponsor and get something established on there.
“It’s always normally harder to change into a second sponsor after four or five years, but still, I think it’s worth establishing the fact and then working hard on the stadium itself with concerts to show there’s real value.
“I would take the £10-15million as soon as I could get it.”
Ranking | Stadium | Capacity |
| 1 | Old Trafford (Man United) | 74,197 |
| 2 | Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (Tottenham) | 62,850 |
| 3 | London Stadium (West Ham) | 62,500 |
| 4 | Anfield (Liverpool) | 61,276 |
| 5 | Emirates Stadium (Arsenal) | 60,704 |
| 6 | Etihad Stadium (Man City) | 52,900 |
| 7 | Everton Stadium – when open (Everton) | 52,888 |
Everton could land £10m payout after confirmed news
Football Insider revealed on 20 March Everton could earn up to £10million from their US pre-season tour this summer.
They will take part in the second edition of the Premier League Summer Series alongside Man United, West Ham and Bournemouth.
David Moyes’s side have all but secured their top-flight status for next season as they sit 15th in the table, 17 points above third-bottom Ipswich Town.
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