Football Ground Map
Football Ground Map
Ipswich Town's new American ownership, Gamechanger 20, are forging ahead with plans to improve the stadium experience at Portman Road, returning the Suffolk stadium to Premier League standard. Although the Blues find themselves in League One at present, the club's new ambitious owners have a long-term vision to take this historic East Anglian club back to the top-flight of English football.
The Tractor Boys have suffered from the variance of the football cycle in the last decade, as most of the Ipswich faithful would attest to. However, variance is by no means immune to the football industry; it occurs in many other sectors too. In the investment world, variance is a key metric, designed to ascertain the potential volatility and profitability of an asset. In the poker scene, variance is one of the main buzzwords in the online game, with players' bankrolls experiencing up and downswings over time. Like a poker player that's been through a rough patch and nursing an epic downswing, Ipswich Town have certainly found themselves in the doldrums of late, having spent the last three seasons in the third tier of English football for the first time since the 1950s.
Under previous owner, Marcus Evans, the Portman Road stadium grew tired and dishevelled due largely to a lack of investment. Under Gamechanger 20, those days appear to be consigned to the history books. CEO, Mark Ashton, has confirmed that the new owners have an estates strategy to revitalise the matchday experience at Portman Road. This 30,000-seater stadium once staged a senior England international friendly against Croatia in 2003, but very little has been invested into the ground ever since.
Planning permission for a new state-of-the-art big screen and revamped dugouts was approved by Ipswich Borough Council at the end of the 2021/22 League One campaign. The town's Borough Council owns the land that Portman Road sits on, but the club owns the stands and the facilities that sit on it - a somewhat unique set of circumstances. Nevertheless, the club has an ongoing lease and the lease states that only sporting activities can be carried out on this area of Portman Road.
To install the new big screen, a gap has been created between the Sir Alf Ramsey Stand and the ageing Cobbold Stand, enabling access for machinery. There is another added benefit for the club to have this new gated access to the pitch from this corner. Currently, pitch access is only made possible via the tunnel area, but this new gate will make it easier for Town to overhaul their pitch with a new 4G surface in 12 months' time.
Aside from the big screen, the club is also installing two new 16-seat dugout areas for players and staff, as well as the "required accommodation" for match officials and medical professionals. The bucket-style dugout seating has been in use at Premier League stadia for several years now, but Portman Road finally appears to be moving with the times.
Another small infrastructural change to the Portman Road matchday experience will be an enhanced PA system, with upgrades expected to be completed in time for the start of the 2022/23 League One campaign.
The Tractor Boys' Gamechanger 20 ownership group are also endeavouring to invest in the club's infrastructure beyond the four walls of Portman Road. Land behind the Sir Alf Ramsey Stand to the south of the stadium has been acquired by the club. The land, which is currently occupied by vacant retail units, is a sizeable plot. CEO, Mark Ashton, has confirmed the club's hierarchy is "looking at several options" to use this land to "enhance and support the club" in the coming years. One option mooted among the Town fan base has been a new 'front entrance' to the ground, which currently points away from the town centre to the west of the stadium.
As the club's new owners look to find new ways to drive commercial revenue through the club's coffers, an improved Portman Road will increase the likelihood of off-season events like concerts that have been a staple on the close season calendar in Suffolk in years gone by. In 2006, Portman Road played host to the Red Hot Chili Peppers and has also staged global acts like REM, Elton John and Rod Stewart.
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