Bicester

Why all this nonsense about moving to Bicester? There will be numerous sites in and around Oxford City boundaries.
 
The Hawk said:
Could OxVox confirm or deny that one of the ‘5 sites’ is Bicester?

I have it from a reliable source (and hugely respected by our fan base by and large, btw) that the money and will is there from Bicester Village to build a new stadium.

This could be Tiger’s plan. And possibly explains the arrival of the new board members.

It is, however, not without significant issues.

If the club were to move outside the city boundary - which Bicester is I believe - then the team named Oxford United would require ratification from the Football League to play there.

A team with a different name could play there.

If you think this scenario sounds familiar to the Wimbledon-MK Dons situation you would be not far wrong.

There are many miles on the road ahead and plenty of potholes.

But everyone should be aware that there is a danger, no matter how small, that Tiger et al want our FL place and a shiny stadium in Bicester to house (insert chronic franchise name here).

I would hope OxVox add this question to their lengthening list. Indeed, any site outside the boundary has issues.
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Ok, I admit that I got well and truly caught on this fishing exercise but let's look at the facts!!

No.1 @The Hawk is our resident investigative journalist but broke nothing of our recent tax issues and has brought nothing of substance to the party since his arrival. Credibility factor zero.

No.2 His source is almost certainly his little buddy Charlie who is neither reliable or hugely respected and massively strung out the Water Eaton project by only having a 30 second conversation with one farmer!

No.3 The whole issue about being a franchise with a name change is deliberate horseshit used to stir up trouble. The FA regulations are extremely vague and do not take into account the urbanisation of towns and cities.

No.4 This project would be disastrous for Bicester Village and Oxford United. It neither fits with the Oxford brand that Tiger has spoken of, or supports the business model of one of the most successful retail units in the world.

So fair play Hawky, you have got your bit if fun but let's stop playing!!!
 
Reading through this thread, why Bicester? apparently the club have identified 5 sites I can only assume they’re in Oxford. Bicester would be a no go because I’m taking just to far from Oxford for the club still to be known as OUFC plus I doubt very much whether Cherwell council would want a football club with the prospect of hundreds of fans both home and away congregating in Bicester bloody village.
 
Wouldn’t moving out of Oxford as such go against the whole Oxford brand that Tiger’s trying to sell?
 
SteMerritt said:
There is no way the Bicester sports club land could be viable for us, for 2 reasons. Firstly it would cause gridlock with traffic, even more so when Bicester Village is operating at its maximum eg January Sales, and secondly the footprint wouldn't be large enough.
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Depends what the motives are Ste. If the motive is simply to build housing and retail units, I'm sure a 10,000 stadium on that tidily rugby pitch would enable them to achieve the first bit. Frankly, not sure why any fan would 'accept' the club moving to the far corner of the county and on the border of Buckinghamshire.
 
SteMerritt said:
The first thing that jumps to mind is what would Bicester Village gain from this? I just can't see why they would be interested, it just wouldn't be of benefit to them. And this is before you even begin to look at the infrastructure. Any new stadium would have to be on the road between Bicester and the M40, and that is bad enough at times, without having the traffic for a 20k seater stadium involved. December and January games would be gridlock.

Can't see this being workable.
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If the motive is simply to build housing and retail units, I'm sure a 10,000 stadium on that tidily rugby pitch would enable them to achieve the first bit. Frankly, not sure why any fan would 'accept' the club moving to the far corner of the county and on the border of Buckinghamshire.
 
uptheus said:
Wouldn’t moving out of Oxford as such go against the whole Oxford brand that Tiger’s trying to sell?
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Just think of all the extra revenue from the new Chinese customers who will take in a visit to a typical English football match, after visiting Kidlington, a typical English village.
 
Scotchegg said:
Not really relevant!
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It's very relevant.

Stupid talk of moving the club to the outpost of Bicester WOULD NOT enable Oxford United to have any serious ambitions of being a reasonable League One club, let alone the rhetoric of Championship and Premiership football.

It's about time Niall McWilliams and his colleagues confirm the magical five sites and actually engage with it's fanbase. Some management at the club are more intent about getting away from a perfectly reasonable location and stadium because they are unable to make non-emotional business decisions.
 
Simon Bradders said:
It's very relevant.

Stupid talk of moving the club to the outpost of Bicester WOULD NOT enable Oxford United to have any serious ambitions of being a reasonable League One club, let alone the rhetoric of Championship and Premiership football.

It's about time Niall McWilliams and his colleagues confirm the magical five sites and actually engage with it's fanbase. Some management at the club are more intent about getting away from a perfectly reasonable location and stadium because they are unable to make non-emotional business decisions.
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A perfectly reasonable location with an absolutely unreasonable owner who seems to want to hold the club to ransom.
An owner of the stadium who despite 'havi g the club's interest at heart hasn't managed to deal with Lenagan, Eales or Tiger (or o deed Oxvox)
 
Simon Bradders said:
It's very relevant.

Stupid talk of moving the club to the outpost of Bicester WOULD NOT enable Oxford United to have any serious ambitions of being a reasonable League One club, let alone the rhetoric of Championship and Premiership football.

It's about time Niall McWilliams and his colleagues confirm the magical five sites and actually engage with it's fanbase. Some management at the club are more intent about getting away from a perfectly reasonable location and stadium because they are unable to make non-emotional business decisions.
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The point was that Bicester was unable to sustain an Hellenic league club, but many Oxford fans travel from North Oxford and many more may attend if closer. Wherever a new stadium is built people will be annoyed that it is too close or too far away.

Bicester (along with other towns on the outskirts) could be a fantastic opportunity to build a stadium that could allow us to grow beyond League 1. Of course, there are much wider issues than location alone but to suggest a new home a few miles from Oxford would be the death of our club is ridiculous.
 
ZeroTheHero said:
Yes but (IMO of course) there is a difference between a softening of the planning and development approach and the actual willingness of anywhere to have a football stadium built on their doorstep. My point really was that the club has told us that they have identified these five sites (wherever they are - within the city boundaries/green belt/brownfield/Bicester/Timbuktoo) and would tell us what they were. They haven't.
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Absolutely agree. Would it be so hard for the club to say that they have no intention of leaving Oxford? (And I would have to say that 5 sites is stretching the imagination!)
 
The Hawk said:
FL rules, as far as I understand, would not allow Oxford United to play outside the city boundary. They could well make an exception but...
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Grimsby play in Cleethorpes
Brighton play in Falmer

to name but two......

and don't get me started on Port Vale!!
 
Thohir to buy the Manor Hospital, bowls club, a few houses on Osler Road and Beech Road and the flats in Blackburn Close and we move back to the Manor! To be fair that's prob cheaper than buying Bicester Village! ;)
 
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Scotchegg said:
The point was that Bicester was unable to sustain an Hellenic league club, but many Oxford fans travel from North Oxford and many more may attend if closer. Wherever a new stadium is built people will be annoyed that it is too close or too far away.

Bicester (along with other towns on the outskirts) could be a fantastic opportunity to build a stadium that could allow us to grow beyond League 1. Of course, there are much wider issues than location alone but to suggest a new home a few miles from Oxford would be the death of our club is ridiculous.
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I think people are getting a little ahead of themselves, I think we should carrying on waiting for the announcement of these 5 sites that the club (Nial) said might be appropriate to move the club too IF it becomes necessary.

If we do actually move to another stadium, this will be for the financial gain of those sponsoring the project not for the fan base.

How many people are still hung up on leaving the Manor even though it was a shithole at the end, but our shithole, now you think it will be a shoe in to get the fans to an out of town venue with a different name, I'm not sure the majority of the fan base will be enamoured on that situation.
 
Scotchegg said:
The point was that Bicester was unable to sustain an Hellenic league club, but many Oxford fans travel from North Oxford and many more may attend if closer. Wherever a new stadium is built people will be annoyed that it is too close or too far away.

Bicester (along with other towns on the outskirts) could be a fantastic opportunity to build a stadium that could allow us to grow beyond League 1. Of course, there are much wider issues than location alone but to suggest a new home a few miles from Oxford would be the death of our club is ridiculous.
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Is growing beyond League 1 your only ambition for the club? Building a stadium outside of Oxford just to play in the top 2 tiers would be the death of the football club for many people. The club would still be alive and functioning, but it's no longer at the heart of the community, we'd be selling our soul for the riches of the Championship and Premier League.

I'd much rather build a small sustainable stadium within the city, retaining the community spirit and heart of the football club. There's more to football than the Premier League...
 
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