Daniel Levy insisted that he will not apologise for increasing Tottenham’s operating revenue by hosting more non-football events at the club’s stadium.
Tottenham’s stadium is a major money printer
Since its opening back in 2019, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has proven a major money printer for the North London club.
With the venue having a retractable pitch, it is able to host other sporting events and concerts on a regular basis, without having to worry about how it will impact the footballing calendar.
According to Sports Business Institute Barcelona, the Lilywhites earn an average of £100.50 per fan who walks through the turnstiles at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, which is the second-highest figure in the Premier League after Chelsea.
TBR football revealed at the start of this month that Spurs earn £800,000 from food and drink sales alone per matchday at the stadium.
Levy gives blunt responses about non-football events
Levy has now pointed out that it is in the club’s best interest to maximise the revenue-generating potential of the stadium so that they can invest more in the team.
When it was put to the Tottenham chairman at the fan forum that the club were in danger of becoming an entertainment brand first and a football club second, he responded (via The Standard): “I think that’s just a lot of misinformation.
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“We just had a get-together with our staff and there were perhaps 500 or 600 staff here. If you were to ask those staff, they understand what this is about.
“We’re about providing the resources for our teams to win. And we don’t make any apologies that we’re trying to increase our revenue base so we can invest more in our teams.
“If that means we have the opportunity because of this great stadium to have concerts, that’s great because we’re giving it all to the teams. I don’t apologise at all. I think it’s good.”
Levy also made it clear that Spurs have a long way to go before they can compete with the biggest clubs in Europe in terms of revenue.
He added: “Last year we broke the £500m [revenue] mark which puts us in the league of the eighth largest club in the world by revenue.
“But we’re still a long way away from some of our biggest competitors and that’s the gap we need to close in order to give more resources to our football teams. And that’s what we’re working on.”
Critics will question Levy’s motive
Most Spurs fans will agree with the principle that hosting more concerts and sporting events at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will benefit the club’s brand and their bottom line.
However, some will perhaps wonder if the funds will even trickle into the first-team and be put to use in the transfer market so that the Lilywhites can go toe-to-toe with the biggest sides in Europe for top players.