Hearts Advised To Leave Tynecastle
Heart of Midlothian look ever more likely to leave Tynecastle, with a report commissioned by Hearts and City of Edinburgh council concluding that redevelopment of the stadium is ‘not a viable option’.
In a statement, the Edinburgh club described itself as ‘suffocating’ at its current home, with the report noting that Tynecastle ‘is in poor condition, lacks many amenities, is constrained by adjacent occupiers and is non UEFA compliant.’
Any move is likely to be to a multi-purpose stadium, with Hearts acknowledging that a new ground would ‘be capable of hosting other top class sports, corporate, arts and entertainment events.’ However, the club has categorically excluded the option of an athletics track in the stadium.
A club spokesperson told the official Hearts website: ‘The emotional ties are undoubtedly to try and redevelop the existing Tynecastle Stadium, however this report highlights the extreme difficulties the club faces. The club is suffocating in its present location but the owner and board remain determined to develop a first class footballing arena in the city. The report provides a number of significant recommendations relating to potential partnership models and we will consider these over the coming weeks.
‘We must deliver a new stadium in order to meet our aim of building a top class football team based in west Edinburgh. In turn, we will be better able to reflect the city’s desire for greater business growth, job creation, revenue generation, attraction of more visitors to the city and showcase Edinburgh as a true footballing and sports city as well as a Festival city.’
