Sheffield merger

[Badger Blade]

AC Milan and Inter seem to manage playing in the same ground and they're both a far bigger deal than either United or Wednesday.

We'd have to blend the colours though and do everything in purple instead, Harchester style.

In reality, its a case of what would be mutually beneficial and as it stands, they'd have far more to gain from it than we would.

It happened a couple of hundred yards up the road from me with Ossett United spawning from Town and Albion but its a bit different having two clubs, neither with a pot to piss in, in a small town drawing 150/200 each than something on this scale.

 

[Bellypork]

I remember Reg Brearley wanting to merge the clubs in the mid-1990s. He warned Wednesday that if they were still in the PL in the new millennium, they'd be fine. Otherwise, expect trouble. It was diamond Dave Richards who signed, along with other PL chairmen, to the effect that the PL clubs would get the lion's share of the money, at the expense of the lower leagues.

In the days when crowds mattered it would have made at least economic sense, but nowadays no. We'd be a laughing stock.

 

[fifty shades of blade]

Got a new team name and badge in readiness. New ground is called The Sty

 

[CaptainMorgans]

I hope COH manage to pull it off, import half the poker player's Bulgarian recommendations and Sheffield City FC romps it's way to Europe in the famous purple and white stripes.

Hard not to have faith in them given their track record at United. #thinkBrighton

 

[chesblade]

Wonder how Chris will react to being questioned about it tonight cause it's definitely going to happen

 

[BornOnShorehamStreet]

Agree…..Sheffielders absolutely hate change and new fangled ambitious ideas.

Would love it…..just out of interest. This is made up fantasy but imagine
if a consortium of American billionaires approached both Sheffield clubs with intentions to merge to form a super club.

However they agreed that it probably won’t be accepted …..so explained they plan to arrange an official on-line vote amongst all SU and SW season tickets holders.

A few weeks before the vote they release a 15 minute presentation video.

The video states they intend to sell off both grounds and buy the Sheffield Arena and surrounding land/ car park space.
They then plan to build a 65,000 capacity stadium on the Sheffield Arena site and buy land for large car park spaces around Attercliffe
And intend to work with the council to have regularly continuous super tram links from town on match days. They also design the stadium to bring plenty of non football related income all year round by regularly hosting concerts, banqueting and conference events.

They make it clear that they are ultra ambitious and are determined to have a team regularly competing in Europe and challenging for honours.
They plan to promote the history of Sheffield as the home of football by buiding a large museum (which would become a tourist attraction) at the stadium site close to the tram stop and they even say they can promote Sheffield’s status by calling the new stadium the “The Home of Football stadium”. They might even try to buy Sheffield FC and use their name claiming the new super club club is the oldest in the world. Who knows? Where there’s a will there’s a way.

If an extremely exciting plan that would create shockwaves and massive publicity in the football world was a possibility.

Then what percentage of season tickets holders would say “nah….not having that”.
Suspect it would be 75%…..so would be rejected.

I love the idea of a super-stadium with facilities for other sports and other types of entertainment duch as Tottenham's new ground. I couldn't believe it when I got there. Amazing stadium, so versatile and weather-proof.

 

[Richeee]

Laughing aside...would it be the only ground in the world where there would be 3 sets of segregated fans..another first

 

[Houston_Blade]

COH stands for Cunt of

Which makes the shite we signed after selling Anel & Souza in Summer even more more inexcusable.

The main reason I dont want a merger is that sometimes we can have a fairly shite season but a least hammer the pigs once or twice to cheer ourselves up a bit and collect some much needed points (Like this season). Losing that "silver lining" would be a tragedy.

In answer to the poll question posed. If it happened.. would I attend? No I think 30,000 of us would just set up another SHeffirld United club and have an experience "doing a Wimbledon" with a bigger fambase.

If the merger happened where would you arrange the protest?

 

[bladesmanluke]

I don't think it would be a merger. They have nothing to offer us. If our owners really did want to buy Sheffield Wednesday it would be a hostile takeover and complete elimination of competition. Whilst some Blades may like the sound of that I actually wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy as much as i despise them

 

[Ron_Justice]

A merger implies creating something greater than the sum of the parts. The Blue side of the City, beyond fan base (which would likely be decimated) offers nothing. Maybe knock down the Rust and build housing, bringing in funds. Then what? New stadium and do the same to The Lane? Fuck that.

It wouldn't be a merger, it'd be a takeover and dissolving of the Blue Half. But then, unless you do the same to Us, what's the point? Other than ticket receipts. Which you couldn't increase, without a new ground. At which point, you're taking about completely redefining what the club actually is.

I want them lot to survive but to be, perpetually, just shitter than us. I'm not sure I could ever support a club that doesn't play at The Lane, unless it was to be just a linear continuation of us right now - we attain and cement PL status and subsequently need a larger stadium. Beyond that, this can get in the bin.

 

[Jimmy Fleck]

The thought of having to sit next to some of the absolute scum seen in that S6 crowd on Sunday is a hard no.

 

[Fjortoft's Aeroplane]

If the merger happened where would you arrange the protest?

edit: just in case some absolute wetwipe takes it seriously.

 

[The Crab]

Absolutely fucking not.

No merger

No takeover.

Nothing

Over my dead fucking body

 

[Silent Blade]

It has been made clear that neither the EFL nor the new Football Regulator would allow such a merger to happen.

 

[Lord Eddard Muir]

Buy them out, pay off all the creditors in full, liquidate immediately. Job's a good'un

 

[FMBlade1]

Buy them out, pay off all the creditors in full, liquidate immediately. Job's a good'un

If the football authorities thought that would happen the fit and proper person test would stop them

 

[Gimli]

Nail on head.
An absolutely earth-shattering but incredibly positive proposal not just for football fans but the entire City itself.
Putting the combination of football history and Sheffield's major part in its origins & development on the world map.
But obviously it doesn't stand a chance in our sleepy football hollow.
That kind of enterprise is for other bolder progressive places.

And don't run away with the idea that I don't love the Blades & the Lane.
I've been going to the Lane since I was 10 , in 1968.
I've probably spent more hours in my beloved ground than many others , because from age13 to my early 20s , I worked on the catering side.
I started as a "tray-lad" and ended up coming in hours before the game to set up the buffets & bars in all the stands.
The sheer thrill of roaming around my ground never left me.
In '74 , when they were building the SS , I was lucky enough to be invited up onto the roof by a gang of Welsh steel-erectors , which I will never forget.
I absolutely love the Lane.
Wherever I've lived in the UK , I've travelled for home matches my entire life - indeed , the Lane is part of the fabric of my life.

But after almost 60 years of joy & tears , the club has never managed to establish itself where its history & loyal support would believe appropriate.

And with the financial aspect coming so much to the fore , that prospect is getting more , not less , remote - based on our 2 failures in '21 & '24 to stay up.

So it's time to shit or get off the pot.

What do you really want for your City and for your club ?

A continuation of unrealistic pretensions of success at the Lane (or indeed Swillsborough) for the rest of your natural life.

Or being part of something bold in order to make a difference to your prospects.

In short , despite the deep attachment , time waits for no man and if you're trying to stand still , you're actually going backwards.

On balance - and it's a very fine balance - I back the concept of a merger.
Though I suspect the majority do not.

That said , a ground-share is the only way either club is going to move into a 21st century stadium with all the benefits that would bring.
At the very least , a ground-share is economically irresistible , let alone all the other advantages , too many to ventilate here.

You’re probably right that a combined team with potentially* 50k+ fans would be more successful than the two are now.

*I think in reality you’d find an awful lots of us and pigs find the idea repulsive so wouldn’t support the new team.

As to the point about us being left behind, you can build a new team with all the success in the world, but it’s a moot point because it wouldn’t be the team I support actually winning it. It wouldn’t be United, it wouldn’t be the team I grew up supporting as a lad, it would be a lie, an MK Dons esque blemish on the game.

 

[harrry1990s]

Will they take the posts down on the kop if there’s a merger?

 

[TJ blade]

Will they take the posts down on the kop if there’s a merger?

Think they should be more worried about taking the posts down on the pitch, because Wednesday don't need em

 

[prescotblade]

Im probably going to get shot down here. Business wise a good move, fan wise a disaster.
From a success point if you want champions league participation, a new stadium that can take 50,000 plus fans, neither club is going to achieve this.
Whilst I suspect a merger would initially lose fans. Support would gradually grow for the club.
Again being controversial but a new stadium shared by both clubs would reduce overheads and hopefully allow team development. It would be interesting to see which team had the bigger support.
I think in the future a shared stadium will happen and suspect over time would lead to a merger of teams.
Reality is neither club has the resources to maintain a top premier league team

 

[SouthStandGBlock]

I thought CIH were potless according to Porktalk?

This undermines that "fact".

Shame we can't buy them and run the Sheffield United women's team out of there. The old slag is close enough to Shirecliff for reserve games.

Let SWFC drift off into the abyss and for a couple of million quid, COH get all the catchment. Makes perfect business sense.

There's a way through this I reckon.

Wouldn't that be beautiful, us owning Wednesday

 

[Lupa The Noa]

I thought CIH were potless according to Porktalk?

This undermines that "fact".

Shame we can't buy them and run the Sheffield United women's team out of there. The old slag is close enough to Shirecliff for reserve games.

Let SWFC drift off into the abyss and for a couple of million quid, COH get all the catchment. Makes perfect business sense.

There's a way through this I reckon.

Wouldn't that be beautiful, us owning Wednesday

They're absolutely skint and are looking to sell.

 

[SouthportBlade]

Honestly fuck a merger

If you want to re write the rules for success then you might as well chose to support Real Madrid.

The narrative of combined heritage and better together as a route to success is a red herring.

Neither club needs the other, nor a pre requisite for success. Either club with enough time and enough investment (Billions) could become an established top flight team and have chances of Europe or domestic trophies.

Bournemouth/Brighton/Brentford etc all done this. Achieved via time and money.

 

[SouthStandGBlock]

W

They're absolutely skint and are looking to sell.

WYHDP ?

 

[Lupa The Noa]

W

WYHDP ?

Just an agent and a journalist both close to the club.

 

[Jonboy60]

They can't

Chansiri tried his best.

 

[Keen Blade]

You’re probably right that a combined team with potentially* 50k+ fans would be more successful than the two are now.

*I think in reality you’d find an awful lots of us and pigs find the idea repulsive so wouldn’t support the new team.

As to the point about us being left behind, you can build a new team with all the success in the world, but it’s a moot point because it wouldn’t be the team I support actually winning it. It wouldn’t be United, it wouldn’t be the team I grew up supporting as a lad, it would be a lie, an MK Dons esque blemish on the game.

Nothing like MK Dons , they were removed from South West London and plonked near some roundabouts off the M1.
This would be located in Sheffield, where club football was invented.

Blemish on 'the Game' ?
The game's gone mate.
It's a global business now.
You can either be in it , with a stadium that has several revenue streams from football (PL money , beer , catering , boxes etc) and from non-football (gigs , conferences etc).
Or out of it , with an ancient stadium in which , try as you might , you can't get to the front of the queue to spend your money , always having your talented young players stolen from you etc.

At the very least we should build and share a stadium - there's no sense in not doing so - even the SCC ought to be able to see that.

 

[Sean Thornton]

Nothing like MK Dons , they were removed from South West London and plonked near some roundabouts off the M1.
This would be located in Sheffield, where club football was invented.

Blemish on 'the Game' ?
The game's gone mate.
It's a global business now.
You can either be in it , with a stadium that has several revenue streams from football (PL money , beer , catering , boxes etc) and from non-football (gigs , conferences etc).
Or out of it , with an ancient stadium in which , try as you might , you can't get to the front of the queue to spend your money , always having your talented young players stolen from you etc.

At the very least we should build and share a stadium - there's no sense in not doing so - even the SCC ought to be able to see that.

Complete with PorkTalkesque guarantee of success. What could possibly go wrong?

 

[Gimli]

Nothing like MK Dons , they were removed from South West London and plonked near some roundabouts off the M1.
This would be located in Sheffield, where club football was invented.

Blemish on 'the Game' ?
The game's gone mate.
It's a global business now.
You can either be in it , with a stadium that has several revenue streams from football (PL money , beer , catering , boxes etc) and from non-football (gigs , conferences etc).
Or out of it , with an ancient stadium in which , try as you might , you can't get to the front of the queue to spend your money , always having your talented young players stolen from you etc.

At the very least we should build and share a stadium - there's no sense in not doing so - even the SCC ought to be able to see that.

Well there is sense in not doing so, if sharing a stadium means leaving BDTBL.

Also you seem quite preoccupied with the idea of us having to be successful for supporting a team to be worth it.

I’m not willing to give up 130+ years of history for a shiny new stadium and a few more quid in the coffers.

 

[Zero dark thirty]

Chansiri tried his best.

Did he really..