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The challenges of enlarging the Emirates

While at the time of its inauguration, the Emirates was considered at the vanguard of the stadium experience, it has fallen behind in the intervening years as technology has transformed our daily lives. General modernisation would be welcomed. For example, phone connectivity is awful and the improvement that has been discussed for a while is yet to materialise. The PA system is imperfect in parts of the stadium. More recent rebuilds utilise innovative systems to get fans through food and drink concessions quicker. All these factors go hand in hand with any capacity increase.

The building itself is only one part of the infrastructure which needs attention, though. Working with the local council, emergency services and Transport for London, plans for an extra 10,000 (possibly more) people to safely arrive and leave the area are a considerable obstacle.

As things stand, two of the stations which are closest to the Emirates and in normal use outside of matchdays are forced out of action for major events at the stadium because they would not pass a safety test for a big crowd. Holloway Road tube relies on a couple of old elevators to get up and down from the platform and the entrance is on a major road, so there is no obvious place for passengers to queue outside. Drayton Park is a small, suburban-style rail station. Too many people would be dangerous in these cases.

Any major structural change would require relocating home games.  In the late 1990s, Arsenal experimented with taking Champions League games to Wembley to maximise the number of fans who could attend. 

Arsenal’s record there was poor. For them, it felt like a neutral venue, giving up the emotional impact of home advantage. They often found their opponents were lifted by playing at the fabled Wembley. 

For the fans, there was the additional aggravation of getting to and from Wembley for matches. It was common for King’s Cross to be closed because the mix of rush hour and thousands of extra football fans caused overload. They had little option but to leg it up Euston Road to try to find an alternative route to Wembley. Then there is the marvel of the mind-numbing, slow shuffle for an hour outside Wembley Park to get on the tube afterwards. All this for a home game. 

West Ham United’s London Stadium is another possibility. Even if it is a problematic ground for atmosphere creation, it would be a more convenient geographical move and considerably cheaper rent than becoming a tenant at Wembley.

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