Everton FC ‘in talks’ over site for new ground near Goodison

EVERTON are in talks with Liverpool city council over a site for a new stadium which is close to their Goodison home.

Blues chairman Bill Kenwright said he remains confident the council is ‘extremely positive in their desire to help’, after making the revelation during the club’s first general meeting with shareholders in five years last night.

The Toffees owner also endorsed a vote to reinstate the annual meetings at the end of yesterday’s event at the Philharmonic Hall, which was attended by around 300 people.

Chief executive Robert Elstone, who had earlier received a round of applause after a presentation which detailed Everton’s financial performance since the last meeting in 2008, said the club has a ‘clear vision’ of the stadium they would like to build – but admitted funding problems mean it is unlikely they will have a new home in the next five years.

He also revealed how a lottery grant will allow the club to build new offices at Goodison after the demise of their previous plans to build a development next to the Park End, and explained how the Blues will use their influx of cash as a result of the Premier League’s eye-watering new TV deal with BT Sports to;

IMPROVE the infrastructure of Goodison Park.

REDUCE its £47.3m debt level, which triggers £4m in annual bank charges.

SUPPORT their world-renowned academy –which is set to enter a team in next season’s European Next Generation Tournament, considered the u-19 equivalent of the Champions League.

HELP new manager Roberto Martinez to sign players capable of helping Everton maintain their impressive track record of league finishes over the last decade.

During a 55-minute talk Elstone, who was hailed as an ‘extraordinary individual’ by Kenwright, went into detail about four recurring issues which supporters raise as areas of concern.

They are, he said, the specifics of other operating costs in the club’s annual accounts, payment of rent for their Finch Farm training ground, their retail deal with Kitbag, and fears that the board want to pay down debt by selling assets.

Elstone explained the Blues are the only top-flight club to disclose details of other operating costs and indicated how the figure has steadily fallen during the last five years and will amount to £21.9m in the as yet unaudited 2012/13 accounts.

They include spending on technical support at Finch Farm, rent and rates, travel and accommodation, and maintenance.

He also reiterated that the Blues spend far less in this area than Premier League competitors; £21.1m less than Manchester City, £19.8m less than Liverpool, £8.7m less than Aston Villa, and £8.4m less than Spurs.

Everton have not made any payments to any board members over the last five years, he added, unlike Manchester United (who have forked out £7.1m), Sunderland (£3.7m), and Spurs (£2.9m).

“There is nothing frivolous in our expenditure,” he said. “The club has always got an eye on its cost base. There are no cosy deals with directors, no payments to directors.”

On the recent purchase of the club’s Halewood training ground by Liverpool city council, Elstone heralded the positives of the deal.

He said it involves a 33% reduction in annual rent payments for the club, a total rent saving of £16.6m, and a fully-protected long term tenancy.

Elstone also explained how 85p of every £1 the club earns in turnover is spent on Finch Farm; from supporting the world-renowned academy to player conditioning, maintenance and other running costs.

He defended the Blues commercial performance and highlighted lucrative bonuses such as this summer’s high-profile USA tour which features a game against Juventus and includes Real Madrid, AC Milan and LA Galaxy.

And he hinted that the club’s long-running sponsorship deal with Thai brewery Chang is set to continue.

Elstone said Everton’s future must focus on building their reputation as “one of the most likeable clubs around”, and involve further participation between the owners and fans.

He also wants the club to improve their memorable matchday atmosphere, and continue to be easy to buy from. Ultimately, he added, he wants supporters to feel proud to be blue.

The over-riding aim on the pitch remains European football, and the Toffees must continue to focus on shrewd scouting, developing young players and rehabilitating and trading.

Although he acknowledged that the new TV cash will give the Blues added spending power in the transfer market this summer, he said that new ‘break even’ rules introduced by the Premier League will restrict how much of that money clubs can spend on wages.

Focusing on the Kitbag deal, which involves the out-sourcing of merchandising, Elstone said: “For us Kitbag is a really good deal. We absolutely believe that.

“Distribution is a problem because it’s limited to three channels; the two shops and the online business. It’s not ideal and we would like products to be available more widely.”

Addressing the concern that the club wants to sell its assets, such as star players, to drive down debt, he added: “If we were paying off our debts we would expect to see debt levels going down and they’re not going down.

“But they are also not spiralling out of control and it is being managed.”

He explained how the club’s accounts list the value of their current squad as around £30m, but insisted the real figure was far higher.

“The net-book figure for the value of the squad of £30m is crazy and no reflection of reality. It significantly under-states our assets because our playing squad actually has an insured value of £150m.”

2008/9£38.0m

2009/10£44.9m

2010/11£44.9m

2011/12£45.9m

2012/13£47.3m

(Figures include Prudential loan, overdraft, cash balances and other loans)

2008/9£79.7m

2009/10£79.1m

2010/11£82.0m

2011/12£80.5m

2012/13£86.3m

(Figures include matchday, commercial and broadcast income)