St James's Park

[gullintwoplaces]

I see that the real St James's Park is having its name changed by its rotund, much loathed Chairman, some people will do anything for money. No wonder Magpies fans hate Ashley so much.

What about the inferior St James's Park up the road? It too could have its name changed. Some suggestions:

The Grecian 2000 Arena (as grey as the football played inside)
The Tisdale Cravat Bowl (or a similar dodgy tie sponsor)
The Blue Square Stadium (reflecting the real home of its resident team)
The Thomas Crapper Ceramic Bowl (a measure of the team's quality)

[Stoke_Gull]

I don't understand Ashley's thinking behind this. The ground and club are already sponsored by Sports Direct, how can Newcastle possibly gain any extra revenue from changing the name of the ground? This has highlighted once again Ashley's immense stupidity, things are finally looking up for them with a half decent squad and a manager who looks like he knows what he is doing (at the moment anyway), the fans were beginning to warm to Ashley and then he goes and does something like this and gets the fans on his back again. What a moron.

[cambgull]

Supposedly, it is a temporary measure to show prospective sponsors that they are happy to change the name. It's just another way to make more money and I don't see the problem if its a new stadium which doesn't have its name known, but it shouldn't be for established grounds, that's just wrong.

[ferrarilover]

This Ashley is a clown.

He has a chance to earn some real brownie points, a PR coup waiting to happen. He could have called it the UNICEF stadium, or the Save the Children arena, really made people take notice. Instead, once again, he's acted in shameless self interest and put his tacky little poor people shop ahead of a football club with 120 years of proud tradition behind it.

As the amusing Australian man I hear about on an episode of QI once would say: Bloke's a bloody idiot.

Matt.

[tufcbrett]

I dont know why people are kicking up other it. Yes i undertsand changing the name isnt great but every other team dont cry about it.
If it brings £10mill a year in then i wouldnt complian. It might be called the Sports Direct Areana, Or Aunt Bettys Yorkshire Pudding. But the fans will always know it as St James.

Arsenal - Emirates Stadium
Man City - Etihad Stadium
Leicester City - King Power Stadium
Bolton - Reebok Stadium
Stoke - Britannia Stadium
Wigan - JJB/DW Stadium
Reading - Madejski Stadium
Coventry - Ricoh Arena
B2net Stadium - Chesterfield

We are used to them being called by there names. They are off the top of my head. Could find loads more.

[gullintwoplaces]

I dont know why people are kicking up other it. Yes i undertsand changing the name isnt great but every other team dont cry about it.
If it brings £10mill a year in then i wouldnt complian. It might be called the Sports Direct Areana, Or Aunt Bettys Yorkshire Pudding. But the fans will always know it as St James.

Arsenal - Emirates Stadium
Man City - Etihad Stadium
Leicester City - King Power Stadium
Bolton - Reebok Stadium
Stoke - Britannia Stadium
Wigan - JJB/DW Stadium
Reading - Madejski Stadium
Coventry - Ricoh Arena
B2net Stadium - Chesterfield

We are used to them being called by there names. They are off the top of my head. Could find loads more.

Thing is, all those are new grounds, and there is no history with the name. The issue is more about changing the names of old grounds, and losing the history and tradition that goes with that.

Just suppose that Heinz moved a big factory to Torquay, and the Council honoured this boost to the economy by changing the name of Torquay to Heinzville? I for one would fight this tooth and nail. There is so much nonsense talked about "brands" and "brand values" in football. I as a traditionalist think that this demeans the game.

However, I still think the scum's ground should have to change its name if the proper St James's Park has to. I was thinking of "The Uri Geller Spoonbending Stadium", in honour of their most famous fan.

[tufcbrett]

Noone will change the name of a town or city. They might be new grounds, but sponsorship is massive in sport and if you can get money for the stadium rights i dont see the problem. If we sold our stadium name to Yeo Valley and we was the Yeo Valley Stadium i really wouldnt be bothered. End of the day it would be good money for the club.

As fans we will always know newcastles ground as St James. It might be known as Sports direct or whatever but we will know it as different. Man city changed theres and i still call it the city of manchester.

Its sad but football is now all about buisness. The cost of players, and everything is going up and some clubs are struggling to stay afloat. If we got more money to help run our club by selling the stadium name then il support it as it will be our club alive. We would always know it as plainmoor. Its like they could change the name of the Popside and we would always call it the pop. I agree i prefer how football was, but you need to do what you have to do today to exsist.

End of the day as long as we have a team to support every week. I dont care if were playing at Plainmoor or a renamed the Heinze Areana. The history will always be there, but talk to Forest and other clubs about history. its got them nowhere now. Once Champions of Europe now struggling in the 2nd tier of English football. Then look at Luton once a prem league side, now in the BSP.

[gullintwoplaces]

I just don't agree, but there you go!!

[AustrianAndyGull]

Ultimately this is the future of football and there is absolutely nothing we can do about it. We just have to accept it and move on. Football has changed so much this last 20 or so years and, apart from the updated stadia, for the worse in my opinion. Just thank the Lord that English football has so far escaped actual clubs being re-named after well known brands like my other joint favourite club Red Bull Salzburg. I just call them FC Salzburg as do many other bulls out there but i have had the club crest tattooed on my forearm which gives free advertising to Red Bull whenever i wear a short sleeved shirt. Again, i hate this branding of clubs but could it happen in England? Ginsters Plymouth FC or Colmans Norwich City FC. Sounds mad but it will come.

[Trojan 67]

None will change the name of a town or city.

So who are the faceless dicks who changed the name of Torquay to Torbay ?

Paignton and Brixham ain't happy either.

What really pisses me off is the local born and bred with two sets of great great grandparents in the graveyard/gone up the crematorium chimney, who refer to their birthplace as "Torbay".

Some weren't born in "Torbay", some were born in Shrublands. Then there's the few, we lucky few, who were born at home, in the ghetto, in the "Bronx" (Ellacombe).

[gasrex]

Football fans will still call it St James Park anyway, as they do with Valley Parade which has had several sponsors names. If Newcastle fans are really so upset about how their owners raise funds to pay obscene amounts of money to the type of player needed to keep them at Premier League level, maybe they should insist their board implement a strict wage policy and accept all the consequences that comes with that.

[gullintwoplaces]

Football fans will still call it St James Park anyway, as they do with Valley Parade which has had several sponsors names. If Newcastle fans are really so upset about how their owners raise funds to pay obscene amounts of money to the type of player needed to keep them at Premier League level, maybe they should insist their board implement a strict wage policy and accept all the consequences that comes with that.

But that is exactly the problem. They have to sell the ground's name to pay the players even more obscene wages. Wage levels keep rising and then they have to find another source of money. This vicious circle has resulted in the fans being fleeced, TV ruling football, unsavoury characters coming in to run Premiership clubs (characters that would sell the shirt of their mother's backs to make money). It has allowed the likes of Sepp Blatter and his cronies to milk the international game. It demeans football.

All I am arguing is that this escalation just lines the pockets of a few, it makes somebody like Rooney into one of the wealthiest people on the planet. I hate the Premiershit with a passion, just love the Gulls.

[gasrex]

But that is exactly the problem. They have to sell the ground's name to pay the players even more obscene wages. Wage levels keep rising and then they have to find another source of money. This vicious circle has resulted in the fans being fleeced, TV ruling football, unsavoury characters coming in to run Premiership clubs (characters that would sell the shirt of their mother's backs to make money). It has allowed the likes of Sepp Blatter and his cronies to milk the international game. It demeans football.

All I am arguing is that this escalation just lines the pockets of a few, it makes somebody like Rooney into one of the wealthiest people on the planet. I hate the Premiershit with a passion, just love the Gulls.

I agree, that is the problem, and that is my point. I suspect most fans of premier clubs would not want to go back to pre -Sky times, and they enjoy the benefits of the money that rolls into their clubs. Ask a Newcastle fan if he would rather a) Keep the name St James Park, but share all the TV money etc between all 92 league clubs or b) Change the name of their stadium and sign international class players, I think most of 'em would go for the latter option.
Football really did change drastically in 1992- not all for the worse mind you- and clubs like Newcastle have benefited more than most, but there are consequences of allowing the game to become a business, and adding sponsors names to grounds is one of them.
Sometimes I'm glad I support a shit 4th division club - not often, but sometimes!

[Trojan 67]

Um ? There is a distinct difference between the "St James's".

One team plays at St James', the other at St James's.

Without digging out a 1960s football annual from the loft, I'm unsure which spelling is which and applied to what one.

[Scott Brehaut]

Newcastle is, officially, (and before the pedants come out, technically it is the Sports Direct Arena now, but still), St James' Park.

The Greasers play at St James Park (with no apostrophe)