Today’s Mail on Sunday is reporting that Tottenham are drawing up secret plans for a new multi-purpose stadium that will seat 65,000, big enough to entice an American NFL team to move to London.
Earlier in the year Spurs gave up on the idea of a £400 million 56,000 seat stadium saying that they wanted to consider options for their current ground White Hart Lane.
The British daily newspaper is now reporting that Spurs have taken on the firm that designed both the Olympic Stadium and the Emirates Stadium home of rivals Arsenal in order to design a Stadium that would be suitable for both soccer and American football.
It is though that plans will include two pitches one of which can fit on top of the other, and slide away when not in use.
The very idea of a slide away playing surface would be a ground-breaking innovation, but also an extremely expensive option to have in order for the two sports to be able to share the same venue.
Currently the NFL plays two games a season at Wembley and for 2014 has already earmarked three games to be played in the U.K. when London will host Jacksonville v Dallas Cowboys, as well as Atlanta Falcons v Detroit Lions and Oakland Raiders v Miami Dolphins.
When talking to a group of sports journalists earlier in the week NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said: ‘The great thing about our fans in the UK is that it seems they want more and more. And we want to deliver that. I’ve often said I don’t rule out that there could be a franchise here in the UK. If it continues to grow that is a real possibility.’
