Anfield Road expansion would cost up to £70m

Liverpool FC chief executive Ian Ayre says the redevelopment of the Anfield Road stand would cost somewhere between £60million and £70million.

Such an investment would see the Anfield capacity rise to around 60,000 but the repayments spread over 15 years that would be required to finance the extra 6,000 seats were described by Ayre as “not a smart investment for the business.”

However, Ayre did suggest that the club might be willing to consider expanding the stand if supporters could raise revenue to support such a construction when the idea was put to him by a fan.

The outgoing CEO said: “A stand behind a goal doesn’t have the benefit of hospitality that would go a long way to meet the redevelopment costs.

“If you consider the redevelopment of Anfield Road from a purely General Admission perspective, building, say, 6,000 extra seats to take the capacity up to 60,000 would cost somewhere between £60m and £70m.

“At £12,000 to £13,000 per seat, it would take approximately 15 years to pay back, which is not a smart investment for the business. Therefore the Club needs to find a rounded solution that’s in the best interests of the football club.”

Addressing Ayre, Liverpool fan Graham Smith said: “There are people who would think a 15-year return would make sense, and that’s the supporters. The supporters would fund such a development upfront if the Club made an appeal for financial support.”

According to the report in The Echo, Ayre said ‘while he that was not in a position to speak for the owners or their plans, it was an interesting proposition and one worth looking at.’

“We should have that conversation,” said Ayre.

Back in September, FSG’s John Henry angered fans by suggesting that the Anfield Road end wouldn’t be expanded due to previous fan protests relating to increased ticket prices.

“I don’t know if there is a next step because ticket prices are an issue in England. That may foreclose further expansion. We’ll have to see,” said Henry.