Premier League chief Richard Scudamore holds the key to Tottenham’s hopes of starting next season at Wembley before moving to their new stadium.
Spurs are considering playing a run of home games at the national stadium if their 61,500-seater ground is not ready for the start of the campaign.
To play in two different home stadiums in the same season, Spurs would need permission from the Premier League board of executive chairman Richard Scudamore and non-executive directors Kevin Beeston and Claudia Arney. Ultimately, the decision is likely to come down to Scudamore, who has a good relationship with Daniel Levy and has held talks with the Spurs chairman over the club’s plans for next season.
Other Premier League clubs would not have a say in the decision, which could provoke anger if it is perceived Spurs are being given special treatment.
Spurs’ option to spend the whole of next season at Wembley expired last month but they have until the end of May to tell the FA if they want to continue at their temporary home for the start of the new campaign — one of the contingency plans agreed when they signed the deal with the FA last year.
Three-thousand workers are operating around the clock and the club are keeping their options open in the event of unexpected delays.
Spurs have already confirmed the possibility that they could start next season with a run of away matches, just as Liverpool and West Ham did in 2016-17 and 2017-18 respectively. The Premier League are reluctant to grant Spurs more than three consecutive away games.
Tottenham’s only confirmed fixture commitment at their new ground is the NFL game between Seattle Seahawks and Oakland Raiders on October 14 but the club insist that it will not be the first fixture at their new home.
(Evening Standard)