Derek Llambias: “Do you think me and Mike call it the Sports Direct Arena?
"We call it St James’s Park, because it is St James’s Park.
“The naming rights is such a passionate thing. It’s not about being disrespectful or taking away the tradition or the history of the club – it’s about trying to get another Yohan Cabaye out there on the pitch. That’s how we see it.
“To optimise our commercial side, we needed to get that in there – other clubs do it.
“We’ve had to take the criticism on the nose.
"We’re not riding roughshod over people’s love. People come to see our players on the pitch. It’s about us, the fans, the manager, the players and the region – it’s an emotional thing.
“If we wanted to ride roughshod, we’d just put the ticket prices up. That’s not happening.
“We know we’ve got a huge responsibility, and we know there’s a lot of emotion involved and we are emotional people, too.
“We are not being disrespectful. Mike and I understand and feel for it.
“The only area of income we can really build is the commercial revenue. We don’t want to put ticket prices up. We have a 10-year ticket deal and now we’ve announced a nine-year deal.
“There are only a few ways to increase our income. We know the naming rights is contentious, but that income is something we need.
“Could our stadium be the O2 Arena of the north? I think it could.
“It’s already a cathedral, but it’s dead in the summer. There are things the club can expand on, but we are limited.
“Sports Direct is showcasing the naming rights, but without Sports Direct we would not be in Newcastle. That is the business that gives Mike the power to do what we’re doing, and the power to put £270m of his own money behind the football club.
“We’d have loved someone to come along and say, ‘We’re going to give you the money for the shirt sponsorship and the stadium.’
“We just feel it’s for the good of our club going forward and it could give us another player.”
Source: FOOTYMAD
