Article in the guardian, obviously we feature, New ground: 10 unsuccessful modern stadium moves
The relative disappointments of Derby and Sunderland pale into insignificance next to one of the great stadium nightmares of our time. In their golden age, Coventry City were top-flight mainstays, winning the FA Cup and converting Highfield Road into England’s first all-seater stadium. As a new century approached, they decided a new stadium could expand their horizons.
Coventry’s plans were ambitious: a 45,000-seater, multi-purpose venue touted as a potential new national stadium. By the time it opened in 2005, Coventry were in the second division and the plans had been drastically redrawn. A naming rights deal with Jaguar fell through and financial difficulties meant the club had to lease their new home as part of a tangled ownership arrangement.
Much worse was to follow after the team dropped into League One in 2012. Sisu, the club’s hated hedge fund owners, steered the club into administration amid a petty dispute with the stadium operators that left Coventry locked out. After a spell playing home games 35 miles away in Northampton, they returned in 2014 but slipped into the fourth division, a sorry shell of the club they once were.
Under Mark Robins, Coventry have climbed back to the Championship but are currently tenants at Birmingham City, with the Ricoh now owned by rugby union side Wasps. The Sky Blues are now focusing on building a new ground; it is unlikely they will ever play at the Ricoh Arena again.
The relative disappointments of Derby and Sunderland pale into insignificance next to one of the great stadium nightmares of our time. In their golden age, Coventry City were top-flight mainstays, winning the FA Cup and converting Highfield Road into England’s first all-seater stadium. As a new century approached, they decided a new stadium could expand their horizons.
Coventry’s plans were ambitious: a 45,000-seater, multi-purpose venue touted as a potential new national stadium. By the time it opened in 2005, Coventry were in the second division and the plans had been drastically redrawn. A naming rights deal with Jaguar fell through and financial difficulties meant the club had to lease their new home as part of a tangled ownership arrangement.
Much worse was to follow after the team dropped into League One in 2012. Sisu, the club’s hated hedge fund owners, steered the club into administration amid a petty dispute with the stadium operators that left Coventry locked out. After a spell playing home games 35 miles away in Northampton, they returned in 2014 but slipped into the fourth division, a sorry shell of the club they once were.
Under Mark Robins, Coventry have climbed back to the Championship but are currently tenants at Birmingham City, with the Ricoh now owned by rugby union side Wasps. The Sky Blues are now focusing on building a new ground; it is unlikely they will ever play at the Ricoh Arena again.
