BEDS. This is what we'd be up against IF we had a 12000 capacity stadium in the Championship.
Brentford are moving stadiums soon, Burton will probably go down. We would head into that division with the smallest stadium! Still!!
Forget your sustainable growth model mate, it wouldn't work on the basis that cash that would normally be spent on the team would have to be spent on the repayments instead. We would then have a rubbish team and the crowds would probably go down, not up!
Without chucking at least 30 million quid into the pot, Our only hope for a sustainable football club in the top two tiers is (a) a good team first and foremost & (b) a Bounemouth style bankrolled entrant into the premiership.
No other 'model' would work. To attract the next level of 'investment', get the team into the championship, and attract the money people across the world to join the party.
A 12000 capacity stadium would make virtually no difference whatsoever in the grand scheme of things, other than giving us a nicer lower league ground. But with zero chance of filling it unless we got to the 2nd tier. Our overheads would go up massively as well. R&D closed the Airwair (not sure how to spell it) stand behind their goal which they spent a fortune on because they couldn't afford the running costs. MK Dons are clearly skint despite their wonderful facilities and flirtations in the Championship.
Basically, there is zero business case to go from 8000-12000 for an 'investor'. On the flip side, if the club was fan owed, and adapted your model the budget for players short term would go down unless the crowds went up massively which they wouldn't do unless the team was top of the league.
For the risk of repeating a point Im sure I've made previously, If I won 150million the euro lottery Id 'have a play' with the Cobblers, Id increase the playing budget year in year out in the hope of fluking it into the premiership, then Id 'sort the ground out'. Or flog it to someone richer than me if 'the club caught the eye' of someone during the journey. I reckon thats pretty much what our 'owners/investors' are looking to do.
20 years ago Id have done things totally differently. Probably what your suggesting. 2018 versus 1998 - completely different world now. The rich local businessman or lottery winner (!) has no place in football these days, not at the top table. Its gone way beyond that. The days of adding 2000 to your capacity and it making a difference are long gone. We are where we are mate, but I don't expect to change your opinion!
Team sum Matches average
1 Leeds United Leeds United 453.644 14 32.403
2 Aston Villa Aston Villa 428.111 14 30.579
3 Sunderland AFC Sunderland AFC 387.715 14 27.694
4 Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers 387.403 14 27.672
5 Sheffield United Sheffield United 377.527 14 26.966
6 Derby County Derby County 374.168 14 26.726
7 Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday 365.116 14 26.080
8 Norwich City Norwich City 358.842 14 25.632
9 Middlesbrough FC Middlesbrough FC 357.354 14 25.525
10 Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest 354.204 14 25.300
11 Birmingham City Birmingham City 290.102 14 20.722
12 Bristol City Bristol City 285.702 14 20.407
13 Cardiff City Cardiff City 268.020 14 19.144
14 Fulham FC Fulham FC 262.200 14 18.729
15 Reading FC Reading FC 242.195 14 17.300
16 Ipswich Town Ipswich Town 234.923 14 16.780
17 Hull City Hull City 220.041 14 15.717
18 Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers 212.202 14 15.157
19 Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers 199.768 14 14.269
20 Barnsley FC Barnsley FC 194.307 14 13.879
21 Preston North End Preston North End 193.067 14 13.791
22 Millwall FC Millwall FC 177.813 14 12.701
23 Brentford FC Brentford FC 140.781 14 10.056
24 Burton Albion Burton Albion 65.943 14 4.710