Stefan Borson: Arsenal face 'big' stadium issue after Kroenke reveal

Arsenal may find it difficult to increase the capacity of the Emirates due to the rigorous planning issues they could face in London.

That is the view of finance expert Stefan Borson, who exclusively told Football Insider the North London giants would likely only be interested in an expansion if they could add a further 10,000 seats.

In an interview with ESPN on 30 July, Arsenal co-chair Josh Kroenke revealed the club are starting to think about possible upgrades and potentially an expansion to the Emirates.

The Premier League side left Highbury for the Emirates in 2006 as they looked to bring in larger audiences and attract bigger global sponsorship deals.

The 60,704-seater facility cost £390million to build, making it one of the most expensive stadiums in the world at the time.

Josh Kroenke cautious over Arsenal stadium expansion plans

Borson suggested Kroenke was cautious in the way he spoke about the stadium expansion discussions because he’s likely unsure whether it is a realistic possibility.

“Arsenal do have some space around the stadium,” Borson told Football Insider.

“But they are also a central London location.

“We know that central London locations have much more rigorous planning issues when it comes to developments of that nature, so we will have to see.

“I think the reason he’s quite cautious in the way that he’s expressed it and the way that he’s talked about it being very preliminary is because I don’t think he’s got any certainty that they are going to be able to do it.

“You would think they would only be interested in doing it if they could put 10,000 new seats in, which would be a big capital project.

“Clearly, if you can do it, then you would because you are in London and the seat prices are that much more.

“But I think it’s going to be hard to find a way in which they can put another tier on top of that stadium.”

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