{"id":164323,"date":"2025-06-07T00:44:12","date_gmt":"2025-06-07T00:44:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/164323\/"},"modified":"2025-06-07T00:44:12","modified_gmt":"2025-06-07T00:44:12","slug":"everton-chief-reveals-hill-dickinson-stadium-2-0-masterplan-construction-finances-outlined-by-expert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/164323\/","title":{"rendered":"Everton chief reveals Hill Dickinson Stadium 2.0 masterplan, construction finances outlined by expert"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Are you used to calling it the Hill Dickinson Stadium yet? Thought not \u2013 but naming rights are just the tip of the iceberg as Everton plot even bigger changes for their new home at Bramley Moore Dock.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The 52,888-seater stadium officially opens its doors for Everton\u2019s<\/a> senior men\u2019s team in just over two months\u2019 time.<\/p>\n

T-minus two weeks until fixture release date, the mood music suggests that, should the Toffees be drawn at home in the opening round of fixtures, they may well kick off the 2025-26 Premier League<\/a> season on Friday 15 August in front of the Sky Sports cameras.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, Everton are expecting their biggest summer in the transfer market<\/a> for quite some time, although thanks to the Premier League\u2019s Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR)<\/a>, it is admittedly a low bar.<\/p>\n

\"ChartEverton profit and loss chart<\/p>\n

Credit: Adam Williams\/TBR Football\/GRV Media<\/p>\n

Towards the end of his reign, Farhad Moshiri<\/a> was tighter than a submarine door. As well as PSR constraints, the former owner\u2019s money simply ran out. Even if the Merseysiders had the headroom, they wouldn\u2019t have been able to make use of it.<\/p>\n

After years of indiscriminate spending with little return on investment, the Monaco-based businessman took on high-interest debt from a variety of lenders to cover running costs.<\/p>\n

But after 30 June when the PSR assessment window rolls over into a new three-year monitoring period, Dan Friedkin<\/a> should be able to turn on the afterburners. The \u00a3115m loss they suffered in 2022-23 (which, as it happens, was only the third heaviest in the Moshiri era), drops out of the equation. <\/p>\n

And perhaps more significantly, The Friedkin Group have refinanced the club\u2019s debt<\/a> through a syndicated loan organised by JPMorgan, which includes a revolving credit facility (an overdraft, essentially) and a repayment term on the stadium debt that will be kinder to Everton\u2019s short-term cash flow.<\/p>\n

\"PhotoPhoto by Anthony Devlin\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Everton aren\u2019t in the clear just yet \u2013 don\u2019t expect to see full-fat, lavish spending this summer. Friedkin and his deputies will continue to player-trade to eke out more PSR headroom and rebase David Moyes\u2019 squad. However, the newly-named Hill Dickinson Stadium will, in the medium and long-term, be their salvation.<\/p>\n

There is a growing contingent of well-resourced, well-run clubs whose ambition it is to challenge the orthodoxy of the so-called \u2018Big Six\u2019. The revenue gap between the Big Six and the rest is actually growing, but thinking smart trumps spending big. <\/p>\n

\"ChartPremier League Big Six vs Non Bis Six revenue<\/p>\n

Credit: Adam Williams\/TBR Football\/GRV Media<\/p>\n

With Everton forecasting matchday income of \u00a343.7m<\/a> at the Hill Dickinson, up from \u00a319m last season, plus the various commercial benefits which the club think could take overall stadium revenue closer to \u00a370m annually, there is no reason they cannot become part of that ambitious contingent. In fact, they probably have a better platform than the lot.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s more, the owners think there is far, far more value to be extracted from Bramley Moor Dock, provided they get the finances right.<\/p>\n

Colin Chong calls for public funding as Everton look to expand Hill Dickinson Stadium site<\/p>\n

Everton were recently revealed to be in the final stages of discussions to acquire Nelson Dock, the plot of land next door to Bramley Moore Dock.<\/p>\n

The plan? A \u201csports-led redevelopment,\u201d according to Colin Chong, Everton\u2019s former interim CEO, whose role has been filled by Angus Kinnear but who is staying on to oversee the evolution of the stadium project. Peel Ports, the land\u2019s current owners, have already secured planning permission for the site.<\/p>\n

\"AerialNelson Dock, next door to Everton\u2019s Bramley Moore Dock stadium<\/p>\n

Credit: Paul Ellis\/AFP\/Getty Images <\/p>\n

Around the perimeter of the disused dock, Everton want to create a mixed-use commercial and residential space, with hotels, shops, a sports centre and apartments.<\/p>\n

Friedkin, in his capacity as owner of AS Roma, is overseeing a similar development in the Italian capital. Indeed, the concept of a \u2018sports city\u2019 with a new-build stadium at its heart is increasingly the go-to model for owners of elite clubs. <\/p>\n

Manchester United, Birmingham City, Leeds United and Newcastle United are all thinking along similar lines with their own stadium projects, which are being pitched as catalysts for urban regeneration.<\/p>\n

\"ChartMatchday income and stadium capacity graph<\/p>\n

Credit: Adam Williams\/TBR Football\/GRV Media<\/p>\n

Essentially, the clubs need investment from the government \u2013 and, in turn, the public purse \u2013 to make the projects commercially justifiable. In return, they say the projects will activate economic growth.<\/p>\n

Speaking to the Financial Times<\/a>, Chong said: \u201cWe need a third of financial support to come from government [and] until we\u2019ve got that commitment, things really aren\u2019t that viable.\u201d<\/p>\n

How much \u201ca third\u201d is exactly, we don\u2019t yet know, but it will likely run into the \u00a3100m-plus bracket.<\/p>\n

Incidentally, Chong was speaking at the MIPIM festival in Cannes, where one of Friedkin\u2019s other clubs, AS Cannes, is based. The 60-year-old is also trying to force through plans for a new stadium for AS Roma, though that has been a long-running saga with many false dawns.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Return on capital key to Nelson Dock proposal \u2013 Kieran Maguire<\/p>\n

Also speaking to the Financial Times, Liverpool city region mayor Steve Rotherham was playing hardball on the subject of public funding, saying: \u201cWe haven\u2019t got hundreds of millions to invest in public transport infrastructure when it\u2019s going to be used for six hours every fortnight.\u201d<\/p>\n

So, how will Everton outline the business case for public funds and ensure that the expanded Hill Dickinson site is frequented not just on matchdays but 365 days per year?<\/p>\n

\u201cI would look at the potential return on investment from a local government perspective,\u201d says University of Liverpool football finance lecturer and Price of Football podcast host Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively to TBR Football<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe talk about the public purse but there are a variety of different sources of government funding \u2013 you have got central government funding, local government funding, the lottery fund, various grants for sports and so on.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou need to look at how exactly the money is going to be spent. If you\u2019re not spending money on X, you have to spend it on Y. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt will have to be carefully assessed and it will have to be done with a forensic approach as opposed to an emotional response driven by the excitement generated by Bramley Moore Dock.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt looks absolutely magnificent. As an away fan, the fixtures come out soon and I\u2019m desperate for that to be one I can attend. So there are lots of positives, but you have to be careful because there are so many of these projects being announced. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you look at what happens in the United States, sports clubs owners have leveraged the power of the franchise with veiled threats to move away from the city. Things can get very, very complicated very quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Are you used to calling it the Hill Dickinson Stadium yet? Thought not \u2013 but naming rights are…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":164324,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4100],"tags":[41876,162,11817,94,4308,50794,79,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-164323","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"tag-dan-friedkin","9":"tag-english-premier-league","10":"tag-everton","11":"tag-football","12":"tag-football-finance","13":"tag-hill-dickinson-stadium","14":"tag-sports","15":"tag-uk","16":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114639317658258723","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164323","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=164323"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/164323\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/164324"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=164323"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=164323"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=164323"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}