The London Stadium

[Phannan]

This needs looking into imo . If proved impossible then okay. Everything is possible these days though. With the right people looking at it a sport with the glorious history of ours may have a chance. 

[Garry1603]

Surely Harry Redknapp with his West Ham connections could have a word?

Maybe also get the Hearns involved to give it the publicity it needs.

Definitely worth exploring, but as an addition to the Manchester weekend rather than instead of.

[Phannan]

5 minutes ago, Garry1603 said:

Surely Harry Redknapp with his West Ham connections could have a word?

Maybe also get the Hearns involved to give it the publicity it needs.

Definitely worth exploring, but as an addition to the Manchester weekend rather than instead of.

If Harry is serious about his love for the sport then what better way to show this by giving it the help and publicity that it would need to get it off the ground. 

[IainB]

40 minutes ago, Phannan said:

If Harry is serious about his love for the sport then what better way to show this by giving it the help and publicity that it would need to get it off the ground. 

Harry is not serious about his love for the sport... he'll say anything for a brown envelope full of readies.

NOTICE: People stop calling for 'Arry to do stuff, it's quite clear it was a one off publicity stunt to try and keep TNT Sport on board, you may as well ask Linda Lusardi to step in and have a word... if you're having a joke, of course fill your boots 👍

[Dave Jones]

1 hour ago, IainB said:

Harry is not serious about his love for the sport... he'll say anything for a brown envelope full of readies.

NOTICE: People stop calling for 'Arry to do stuff, it's quite clear it was a one off publicity stunt to try and keep TNT Sport on board, you may as well ask Linda Lusardi to step in and have a word... if you're having a joke, of course fill your boots 👍

Whenever i see this guy on tv I shudder . He is incapable of stringing a coherent sentence together & he really does come across as someone who is "as thick as two short planks"

[Phannan]

10 minutes ago, Dave Jones said:

Whenever i see this guy on tv I shudder . He is incapable of stringing a coherent sentence together & he really does come across as someone who is "as thick as two short planks"

His son was a sh*t player too imo. He’s okay advertising slip on trainers 

[Phannan]

1 hour ago, IainB said:

Harry is not serious about his love for the sport... he'll say anything for a brown envelope full of readies.

NOTICE: People stop calling for 'Arry to do stuff, it's quite clear it was a one off publicity stunt to try and keep TNT Sport on board, you may as well ask Linda Lusardi to step in and have a word... if you're having a joke, of course fill your boots 👍

Barry Hearn would be the man if he could only be coerced. 

[orion]

On 6/8/2026 at 9:58 AM, mikebv said:

They'd have to make sure David Sullivan stayed away....

At least there  will be  some decent start line girls 😄

[GeneralMelchett]

In my view no point trying to get speedway in a big stadium unless you can fill it, towards the end of my time going to Cardiff the crowd levels were dropping and whilst the Atmosphere was still good playing out in a half empty stadium doesn't seem right to me!

I've watched Athletics at the LS and can confirm its excellent for that! Never been for football.

[Hawk127]

7 minutes ago, GeneralMelchett said:

In my view no point trying to get speedway in a big stadium unless you can fill it, towards the end of my time going to Cardiff the crowd levels were dropping and whilst the Atmosphere was still good playing out in a half empty stadium doesn't seem right to me!

I've watched Athletics at the LS and can confirm its excellent for that! Never been for football.

Unless you can grow the core base of the sport it is unlikely that you will ever have 80k plus attend a speedway meeting in the UK.. Those days have long gone. However, and it is a gamble, but you almost need to do a “Kerry Packer” and consider thinking outside the box and put on a high value/stakes individual series over and above the GP where the winner gets to take home a substantial amount and for example you have a three or four meeting challenge where the overall winner gets to take home Euro1m plus. The sport itself is high octane high risk and with a format that has a winner takes all it has to be worth a punt assuming you can get the sponsors but it will take a good sales pitch and the Poles are best placed to do this. If it can be sold to sponsors you have one round in Scandinavia, one in UK and one in Poland and it has to be the top riders based on averages not just pandering to smaller nations. The sport needs to invest in its profile and the current GP format generates little interest outside the current hard core following hence it plays in spectator terms, to a mediocre audience in the stadia which in the main leave a lot to be desired and it is never going to take itself to a higher level or reach the previously historic support that you saw at a Wembley final. It needs vision and marketing and unfortunately only the Polish authorities can sell the concept to a European/world wide audience. The UK cronies have no chance of being instrumental in selling the sport at the level needed

[GeneralMelchett]

14 minutes ago, Hawk127 said:

Unless you can grow the core base of the sport it is unlikely that you will ever have 80k plus attend a speedway meeting in the UK.. Those days have long gone. However, and it is a gamble, but you almost need to do a “Kerry Packer” and consider thinking outside the box and put on a high value/stakes individual series over and above the GP where the winner gets to take home a substantial amount and for example you have a three or four meeting challenge where the overall winner gets to take home Euro1m plus. The sport itself is high octane high risk and with a format that has a winner takes all it has to be worth a punt assuming you can get the sponsors but it will take a good sales pitch and the Poles are best placed to do this. If it can be sold to sponsors you have one round in Scandinavia, one in UK and one in Poland and it has to be the top riders based on averages not just pandering to smaller nations. The sport needs to invest in its profile and the current GP format generates little interest outside the current hard core following hence it plays in spectator terms, to a mediocre audience in the stadia which in the main leave a lot to be desired and it is never going to take itself to a higher level or reach the previously historic support that you saw at a Wembley final. It needs vision and marketing and unfortunately only the Polish authorities can sell the concept to a European/world wide audience. The UK cronies have no chance of being instrumental in selling the sport at the level needed

I don't really disagree with any of that - however the GP even in Poland and other countries is restricted to smaller stadia now which suggests that at 10 rounds they are maxed, perhaps less is more and build back up from there! I can remember the Danish GP being at Parken (capacity 35k) now its at Vojens 15k?

Every promoter down under that's tried has made huge losses if i recall things correctly.

I reckon a 20k stadia would be about right - that way it could create that atmosphere and buzz - there is nothing worse than sitting in a half or even majority empty stadium at a sporting event regardless of what it is! 

I even remember the 1989 world final at the Olympic Stadium in Munich and that wasn't sold out either despite it being a healthy crowd.

This might bring back some happy memories - World Final at Odsal 1985 - 37,000 apparently!

https://www.yfanefa.com/record/2011

[IainB]

31 minutes ago, Hawk127 said:

Unless you can grow the core base of the sport it is unlikely that you will ever have 80k plus attend a speedway meeting in the UK.. Those days have long gone. However, and it is a gamble, but you almost need to do a “Kerry Packer” and consider thinking outside the box and put on a high value/stakes individual series over and above the GP where the winner gets to take home a substantial amount and for example you have a three or four meeting challenge where the overall winner gets to take home Euro1m plus. The sport itself is high octane high risk and with a format that has a winner takes all it has to be worth a punt assuming you can get the sponsors but it will take a good sales pitch and the Poles are best placed to do this. If it can be sold to sponsors you have one round in Scandinavia, one in UK and one in Poland and it has to be the top riders based on averages not just pandering to smaller nations. The sport needs to invest in its profile and the current GP format generates little interest outside the current hard core following hence it plays in spectator terms, to a mediocre audience in the stadia which in the main leave a lot to be desired and it is never going to take itself to a higher level or reach the previously historic support that you saw at a Wembley final. It needs vision and marketing and unfortunately only the Polish authorities can sell the concept to a European/world wide audience. The UK cronies have no chance of being instrumental in selling the sport at the level needed

It was announced at the Manchester GP that Monster are running some kind of 3 round series within the series for the Polish GP's, I didn't pick up on all the details. 

And of course BSI ran some kind of "Super Prix" back in the noghties, the richest 60 seconds in motorsport or something, was that for £100k

Benfield Sports International (BSI) did run a massive cash-prize gimmick in the noughties, and it is the exact reason why that specific "richest minute" phrase exists.
The event was the **2007 German Speedway Grand Prix**, held at the Veltins-Arena in Gelsenkirchen on October 13, 2007.
BSI heavily promoted it because it marked the **100th Grand Prix** since the SGP series took over from the old one-off World Finals. To celebrate the milestone, BSI put up a staggering **$100,000 cash prize** strictly for the winner of the Grand Prix final.
Because a standard four-lap final takes roughly 60 seconds, BSI’s entire marketing campaign for the meeting billed that specific race as **"The Richest Minute in Sport."**
Here is how that dramatic night actually played out:
 * **The Track Farce:** The event became infamous for all the wrong reasons. The temporary track laid inside the football stadium began disintegrating almost immediately during practice and the early heats, with massive ruts and chunks of shale flying up.
 * **The Delayed Drama:** The track was deemed so dangerous that the meeting had to be completely abandoned on Saturday night and re-staged the following afternoon (Sunday, October 14).
 * **The Winner:** After all the chaos, the legendary **Andreas Jonsson** won the re-staged final, successfully pocketing the $100,000 cheque for his 60 seconds of work. He beat Greg Hancock, Jason Crump, and Leigh Adams to the line.
While the actual event in Germany was a bit of a logistical nightmare for BSI, the marketing line worked so well that the "richest 60 seconds" tagline stuck around in speedway media and broadcasting for years afterward.
 

Edited 1 hour ago by IainB

[IainB]

17 minutes ago, GeneralMelchett said:

I don't really disagree with any of that - however the GP even in Poland and other countries is restricted to smaller stadia now which suggests that at 10 rounds they are maxed, perhaps less is more and build back up from there! I can remember the Danish GP being at Parken (capacity 35k) now its at Vojens 15k?

Every promoter down under that's tried has made huge losses if i recall things correctly.

I reckon a 20k stadia would be about right - that way it could create that atmosphere and buzz - there is nothing worse than sitting in a half or even majority empty stadium at a sporting event regardless of what it is! 

I even remember the 1989 world final at the Olympic Stadium in Munich and that wasn't sold out either despite it being a healthy crowd.

This might bring back some happy memories - World Final at Odsal 1985 - 37,000 apparently!

https://www.yfanefa.com/record/2011

Somewhere like the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham might be the right size and even Nigel Tolley was talking of moving the Brummies there... but then he is completely mad 🎩

[GeneralMelchett]

7 minutes ago, IainB said:

Somewhere like the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham might be the right size and even Nigel Tolley was talking of moving the Brummies there... but then he is completely mad 🎩

I've been to Athletics there - it's a nice stadium good views no matter where you are sat, and yes if a track could be laid it would be ok for speedway I would think.

Another potential one could be the Crystal Palace Athletics Arena - been there for Athletics too similar to Alexander Stadium.

Edited 1 hour ago by GeneralMelchett

[Hawk127]

1 minute ago, IainB said:

Somewhere like the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham might be the right size and even Nigel Tolley was talking of moving the Brummies there... but then he is completely mad 🎩

I assume based on what has gone before the sport is bollocks and will never get back to its heyday and the hard core supporter iit had and is simply left with the remnants of what was a spectacle to be enjoyed by a diminishing number followers. All very sad

[IainB]

25 minutes ago, GeneralMelchett said:

I've been to Athletics there - it's a nice stadium good views no matter where you are sat, and yes if a track could be laid it would be ok for speedway I would think.

Another potential one could be the Crystal Palace Athletics Arena - been there for Athletics too similar to Alexander Stadium.

Staging a Speedway Grand Prix at a temporary venue like Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium is a massive financial gamble, heavily driven by infrastructure logistics. Because Alexander Stadium is primarily a premier athletics venue (with a fixed 18,000 capacity around its running track), hosting a GP requires building a bespoke, temporary dirt track from scratch and renting additional seating if you want to scale up.

While exact, line-by-line budgets are kept strictly confidential by promoters, looking at what it takes to build a temporary track and secure an FIM license gives a realistic cost breakdown. You are looking at a total layout of **between £1.5 million and £2.5 million** for a single Grand Prix weekend.

The major costs break down into three distinct pillars:

### 1. The Track Build & Logistics (£400,000 – £600,000)

Creating a raceable speedway track inside an athletics stadium requires meticulous engineering to protect the existing international-standard running track.

 * **Protection & Base Layer:** Thousands of wooden boards or heavy-duty plastic geotextile membranes must be laid down first to fully protect the underlying running surface from heavy machinery.

 * **The Dirt:** Promoters have to source, transport, and lay roughly 3,500 to 4,000 tonnes of specialised shale or granite mix.

 * **Safety Equipment:** You need to hire and install FIM-regulated air fences, starter gates, referee communication systems, and track-grading machinery (tractors and bowsers) for the weekend.

 * **The Tear-Down:** After the meeting, every single grain of shale has to be meticulously removed and the stadium pressure-washed back to pristine condition.

### 2. Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Rights & Sanction Fees (£500,000 – £800,000)

To host a round of the FIM Speedway Grand Prix, a local promoter or council must pay a substantial staging fee to the global rights holders, WBD Sports.

 * This fee secures the calendar slot, television production rights, and covers the base prize money fund for the 16 competing riders.

### 3. Stadium Hire, Staffing, and Temporary Infrastructure (£400,000 – £600,000)

Alexander Stadium’s permanent capacity sits at 18,000. While that is solid, a flagship British GP usually aims for higher numbers.

 * **Temporary Seating:** If a promoter wants to temporarily scale up capacity (Alexander Stadium can technically be expanded up to 40,000 using temporary grandstands), the hire cost sits around £100 per temporary seat. Adding even 5,000 temporary seats can quickly add £500,000 to the bill.

 * **Staffing & Overheads:** Hundreds of turnstile operators, stewards, medical personnel, and specialized track staff are needed, alongside the cost of hiring the stadium itself from Birmingham City Council.

> **The Financial Catch:** Unlike a permanent venue (like Cardiff's Principality Stadium, which can absorb immense costs due to its 70,000-seat potential), Alexander Stadium has a lower financial ceiling. A promoter would need to guarantee packed-out stands and high-tier ticket pricing just to cover the upfront costs of transforming an athletics track into a world-class shale circuit.

👆 ai

 

[GeneralMelchett]

Just now, IainB said:

Staging a Speedway Grand Prix at a temporary venue like Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium is a massive financial gamble, heavily driven by infrastructure logistics. Because Alexander Stadium is primarily a premier athletics venue (with a fixed 18,000 capacity around its running track), hosting a GP requires building a bespoke, temporary dirt track from scratch and renting additional seating if you want to scale up.

While exact, line-by-line budgets are kept strictly confidential by promoters, looking at what it takes to build a temporary track and secure an FIM license gives a realistic cost breakdown. You are looking at a total layout of **between £1.5 million and £2.5 million** for a single Grand Prix weekend.

The major costs break down into three distinct pillars:

### 1. The Track Build & Logistics (£400,000 – £600,000)

Creating a raceable speedway track inside an athletics stadium requires meticulous engineering to protect the existing international-standard running track.

 * **Protection & Base Layer:** Thousands of wooden boards or heavy-duty plastic geotextile membranes must be laid down first to fully protect the underlying running surface from heavy machinery.

 * **The Dirt:** Promoters have to source, transport, and lay roughly 3,500 to 4,000 tonnes of specialised shale or granite mix.

 * **Safety Equipment:** You need to hire and install FIM-regulated air fences, starter gates, referee communication systems, and track-grading machinery (tractors and bowsers) for the weekend.

 * **The Tear-Down:** After the meeting, every single grain of shale has to be meticulously removed and the stadium pressure-washed back to pristine condition.

### 2. Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) Rights & Sanction Fees (£500,000 – £800,000)

To host a round of the FIM Speedway Grand Prix, a local promoter or council must pay a substantial staging fee to the global rights holders, WBD Sports.

 * This fee secures the calendar slot, television production rights, and covers the base prize money fund for the 16 competing riders.

### 3. Stadium Hire, Staffing, and Temporary Infrastructure (£400,000 – £600,000)

Alexander Stadium’s permanent capacity sits at 18,000. While that is solid, a flagship British GP usually aims for higher numbers.

 * **Temporary Seating:** If a promoter wants to temporarily scale up capacity (Alexander Stadium can technically be expanded up to 40,000 using temporary grandstands), the hire cost sits around £100 per temporary seat. Adding even 5,000 temporary seats can quickly add £500,000 to the bill.

 * **Staffing & Overheads:** Hundreds of turnstile operators, stewards, medical personnel, and specialized track staff are needed, alongside the cost of hiring the stadium itself from Birmingham City Council.

> **The Financial Catch:** Unlike a permanent venue (like Cardiff's Principality Stadium, which can absorb immense costs due to its 70,000-seat potential), Alexander Stadium has a lower financial ceiling. A promoter would need to guarantee packed-out stands and high-tier ticket pricing just to cover the upfront costs of transforming an athletics track into a world-class shale circuit.

👆 ai

 

Absolutely but in all the time i attended Cardiff I do not recall the attendance being more than 45k

A ready made stadium is always desirable but we don't really have one big enough to get a decent buzz about it, I do like the NSS but even with temporary seating for a world event its not big enough - that said it never sold out for the Speedway of nations the other year so what do I know!

Coventry was always great for these events - a shame its no longer viable!