Managing a football club is unique – from on-pitch trials and tribulations to the fickle fancies of the man on the terrace. Kristian Dando meets Cardiff City chairman Peter Ridsdale to get the full story.
Cardiff City’s Ninian Park was
recently described as “one of
the most intimidating away days
in football”. Arriving on a brisk Autumn
morning for an audience with Bluebirds
chairman Peter Ridsdale, it’s easy to see
why. It’s a ramshackle affair with rusting
metal doors topped by a Braces Bread
advert that’s legible on Google Earth.
Directly across the road is the new stadium, soon to be completed, which will be shared with Cardiff Blues. In the old reception area youth team players mill around and the receptionist is taking a call from a fan who wants to come and take pictures of the stadium. His request is breezily approved – unlikely to happen at Old Trafford or Stamford Bridge.
Many will mourn the redevelopment of Ninian Park. But it is perhaps the greatest achievement of Peter Ridsdale that this stadium is even off the ground. In fact, it’s amazing Ridsdale still has a thirst for the game after the vitriolic aftermath of his tenure at Leeds United, when the Yorkshire club scaled the dizzy heights of the Champions League semi-final before financial meltdown and freefall to the third division.
In his autobiography,Ridsdale recounts how he was physically assaulted in the street, and how his wife and young children feared for their lives.
“The thing with football is that once you’ve been in it, it stays in your blood,” he says. “There’s nothing like the feeling of winning a game, and conversely when you lose it can ruin your week. Anybody who’s been privileged enough to be in a similar position to me will tell you that. It’s the only business where if the customer isn’t happy with what they’re seeing they won’t jump ship to a competitor. They’ll tell you what they think of you – loudly, and sometimes unconstructively.”
It is two years since Ridsdale was brought to Cardiff, initially on a short-term deal when the club, then under the control of Sam Hammam, was in serious financial hot water. The debt – to the tune of £17m – is still to be paid to Langstone Corporation, which retains naming rights to the new stadium, but according to Ridsdale, it is manageable now.
“Then every day was spent fire fighting,” he says. “We’re in a better position now than we ever have been. It’s a good time to be associated with the club.”
He even seems to be settling down, saying: “Wales feels more like home now. I’ve moved from an apartment to a house. I feel like part of the furniture.”
Since Ridsdale arrived the club has reached the final of the FA Cup for the first time in 81 years – an impressive achievement considering the Premier League domination of the tournament – challenged in the Championship and produced an impressive line of young Welsh talent, including teenager Aaron Ramsey, who signed for Arsenal in the summer for £5m. Despite the prodigy’s stellar rise, Ridsdale insists it was good business.
“Aaron was 17 at the time and had only made four starts for the club,” he says. “We were negotiating with four clubs – Everton, Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal. I’m absolutely confident that was the best deal we could have got.”
Ridsdale’s embrace of fiscal prudence could come as a shock to the Leeds fans who enjoyed the highs and lows of the free-spending days at Elland Road. But it’s important to remember that Ridsdale was a lifelong fan at the head of the boardroom – and many others would have pursued the same policy he did, given the chance.
Clearly, lessons have been learned, and a measure of emotional distance has helped the decision making process. “I think it’s probably easier being in charge of a club you haven’t been a supporter of,” he says. “I wouldn’t want anybody to think I’m not passionate about Cardiff City. But when you’re a supporter born and bred, it can colour your judgement. You’ve got to make good decisions and put emotions aside. And they’ve got to benefit the long-term health of a football club. We’ve had some difficult calls, but I think we’re stronger for it.”
In a sense Ridsdale’s spell in charge of Leeds seems ahead of its time – predating Roman Abramovich and the rest of them. “I’m cautious about billionaire foreign owners,” he says. “In the current financial situation there’s doubt about whether these people have the funds to support what’s become a feeding frenzy of cash.
“Just look at what’s happened to West Ham and the question marks about their Icelandic owners. Manchester City had to find a new owner after only a year since the last, and Liverpool are doubtful whether their new owners can deliver all they promised.
“It’s not an automatic given that somebody walks in with a chequebook and the world becomes rosier. We need the right level of investment, and make sure it makes the football.”
His watchword now is sustainability. “What I’m proud of is that we’ve delivered a stadium and a competitive team. We’ve done it with normal business methods. There are teams in our division with wealthy owners and they’re not doing any better than us. I know fans dream of what we could do if we had tens of millions to spend on players, but all billionaire owners have made £5m players worth £20m. The fact is they’re still only worth £5m.”
And he believes Cardiff can exploit its position as a footballing outpost, should the team make the Premiership.
“The closest location you can go to watch top-flight football is Birmingham,” he says. “If we get into the Premier League and get our pricing right, there’s no doubt the stadium will sell out every single week.”
But with top-flight clubs such as Blackburn Rovers having swathes of empty seats on televised games, would Cardiff reaching the top-flight and incurring the price-hike, would the club still manage to pack out its new home?
“With Blackburn and Wigan people can watch Manchester United, Liverpool, or Bolton nearby. Middlesborough have Newcastle and Sunderland. We are in a unique position in our location.”
And he claims the average supporter from Canton or Caerphilly will not get priced out. “Getting into the Premier League makes ticket prices less of an issue. The TV revenue is so high you can make sure the fans aren’t priced out. The income stream we need from the gate is 45 to 50 per cent of income. In the Premier League it would be 10 per cent.”
If anything, Ridsdale exudes a sense of perspective – that only going through very public fire can forge. “I’ve learnt that nobody tells you when you’re doing well, and everybody lets you when you put a foot wrong,” he says. “It’s highly emotional, and takes some living with.”
Also in: December 2008/January 2009
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