Manchester City give council an extra £1m
Manchester City are to pay the council an extra £1m a year after agreeing a new lease deal on their Eastlands stadium.
The Blues signed a 250-year agreement to rent the former Commonwealth Games stadium when they moved there from Maine Road in 2003.
As part of the lease terms, a percentage of the club’s match day income was poured into town hall coffers.
The amount has depended on the size of City’s crowds. For the past three seasons the figure has been around £2m.
Under the new deal, the council will receive a flat rate regardless of attendances.
The M.u.E.N understands the fee will start at around £3m and rise with inflation.
Further payments will be made if City are successful in European competition - which looks likely given the fortune pumped into the Blues by mega-rich owner Sheikh Mansour.
Council officials remained tight-lipped over whether plans to increase the current 48,000 stadium capacity have been discussed.
A Blues source said City had no plans to buy the stadium outright but had purchased some land around it and were ‘considering potential development as part of a contribution to the regeneration of east Manchester’.
The news comes a day after City announced club record losses of £121m in their annual report – the second largest in Premier League history.
Despite the staggering sum, City said they were on track to hit their targets and put the loss down to a transfer spree that they say will not be repeated.
The council pocketed £12.5m under the terms of the old lease. A spokesman said when it was signed it was agreed to review it after five years.
He added: "Under the terms of the revised agreement a single fixed sum, which will go up in line with inflation, will replace the previous payment, which was based on a complicated formula taking into account attendance money and income from parking and non-match day events.
"This will result in an increase in the revenue generated, which is dedicated to supporting sports facilities and employment opportunities at Eastlands and elsewhere in the city.
"It is also a much more straightforward arrangement for all parties."
Manchester City have posted the second-biggest loss in the history of British football - and are still looking to end a 34-year wait for silverware. Daily Express http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/203 ... s-of-121m-
Meanwhile, City are considering plans to expand the City of Manchester Stadium as they try to find ways to meet Uefa's new financial regulations. (The Times)
England winger Adam Johnson's career is being blighted because Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini does not rate him, says former England right-back Danny Mills. talkSport http://www.talksport.co.uk/sports-news/ ... nt-johnson
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