The construction of the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium has cost more than anticipated
Tottenham Hotspur are set to borrow another £237m to cover the increasing costs of their new stadium, as reported by the Independent.
Back in May 2017, the club announced an initial £400m with Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs and HSBC. Their current net debt stands at £366m but with the new loan, it will rise to ‘up to £637m’, representing a 59% increase on the initial cost.
The extra £237m will be used to cover a variety of cashflow problems as the club try to finish construction on the new stadium before 2019.
Spurs will refinance the new stadium using a similar strategy to how Manchester United have handled their huge debts during the Glazer era, using a “bond issue”.
A bond issue is when a borrower sells bonds privately to a small group of institutional investors, instead of offering them publicly.
“Working with our Banking Partners and our financial advisor, Rothschild & Co, we shall be converting this development facility, which currently expires in April 2022, into notes with a mixture of debt maturities,” Tottenham confirmed in a statement on Friday night.
The stadium, which is being built on the same site as the old White Hart Lane, was initially supposed to open in time for Spurs’ home match against Liverpool this season, back in September. But unforeseen delays in its construction have meant that Spurs have had to play their home games at Wembley, and will continue to do so until the beginning of 2019 at the earliest.
Tottenham are now aiming to open the new facility – which will feature the longest bar in the country – in time for their home match against Manchester United on January 13th.
Spurs chairman Daniel Levy recently issued an apology to the club’s fanbase, who have become increasingly frustrated by the setbacks, having paid over the odds for a season ticket at the new ground.
