London: Wembley has been ruled out as a temporary home for Tottenham during the reconstruction of White Hart Lane because of a limit on the number of events that can be held there each year.
Spurs have confirmed they will move away from their current ground for one season when work finally begins on their 56,000-capacity stadium in north London.
Although preliminary talks have been held with Wembley, the stadium is limited by Brent Council to 37 events each year because of issues including noise, policing and parking.
on Wednesday the FA confirmed the stadium has already held 33 events this year — including England internationals, FA Cup semi-finals and the final, play-off finals, the Capital One Cup final and various others sporting events and concerts.
Spurs need a stadium that can host a minimum of 19 home games in the Barclays Premier League and would also need it for the FA Cup, Capital One Cup and the possibility of European football.
The old Wembley Stadium was used as a temporary solution for Arsenal in the Champions League between 1998 and 2000 because Highbury’s capacity was severely restricted for European nights.
Spurs, who are still wrangling with a local business over the final piece of land on the stadium site before work can start at White Hart Lane, have explored the possibility of a temporary home at Wembley.
The stadium would be an easy sell to fans because it is a neutral venue and is located just 13 miles west of their current home. A stadium share with Arsenal would be the most logical alternative but this has been ruled out because of the animosity that exists between supporters.
Stadium mk in Milton Keynes, which is nearly 50 miles from White Hart Lane, is also under consideration.
Spurs officials were impressed with the 32,000-capacity stadium during a visit to MK Dons for their Capital One Cup victory over Manchester United last month.
Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has secured a compulsory purchase order on the land surrounding White Hart Lane, but the last remaining tenant has been given leave to appeal to the High Court. Archway Sheet Metal Works, which is run by the Josif family, are refusing to leave until they are given adequate compensation for the inconvenience of relocating.
They have been in discussions with Tottenham for seven years, but cannot reach an agreement with the club.
A Spurs spokesman said: “The club has revised its construction programme in order to take the shortest possible time to construct.
“This now therefore involves the club moving away from the Lane during construction for a period of one season, to start at the beginning of a season in order to comply with Premier League rules. We are currently undertaking due diligence on alternative stadium options.”
White Hart Lane was originally built in 1898 and Spurs moved into their home a year later, but Levy has always dreamed of building one of the best stadiums in Europe in the area.
The current capacity is 36,240, but the Spurs chairman is convinced they need a bigger stadium to generate more income and enable them to compete with the top clubs in Europe.
Tottenham previously bid to move to the Olympic Stadium in Stratford, but lost out to West Ham in 2011.
— Daily Mail
