Aston Villa News 24/7Writer: J P Fear 
Date:Wednesday November 15 2006
Time: 12:15PM
UK time is: 20:51:28
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Villa Park IS NOT Being Re-Named
Contrary to reports, Villa Park is not being re-named. My name however is up for changing if I'm offered enough. Tag Heuer Fear has a certain ring I think.
The Daily Mail are today reporting that Aston Villa chairman Randy Lerner is looking to sell the naming rights of Villa Park.
Obviously this isn't a new story, this has broken several times and the last time Radio WM led with it the club issued an immediate and emphatic denial.
Today's report says Randy has spoken with Envision chief Jeff Knapple to look into the potential for such a deal. Envision are a media group affiliated to the Wasserman Group, who bought out European sports agency SFX on Tuesday, which represents players such as Michael Owen and Steven Gerrard. It also helped Arsenal strike its £100 million deal with Emirates.
HOWEVER.
It is of no use me having a few contacts without using them and I was told by - hey I'm going to go all pressy and say - 'a source close to Randy Lerner' that this is not an option and will not be happening.
He also questioned why, after the club statement denying such moves, that the story has come up again adding there is a president with Randy's NFL club whose stadium is named The Cleveland Browns Stadium. I believe this one of the only, if not the only, stadium not to be named after sponsors.
So basically this isn't going to happen.
It may well the case that people have been consulted at places like Envision, surely that would only be to the good of Villa? Do we not want all options explored and money generated? We all have to listen and consider new ideas in my ever so humble opinion, but not this one as it isn't happening!
I have to admit I wouldn't be that concerned myself, I would never be going to the Budweiser Bowl, I'd always be going to Villa Park no matter what it was called. This is just a non issue though. What we should surely expect though is top sponsors being attracted and our brand re-established as one of the elite in European football. Anyone going to complain at that?
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Your Comments
The thing about changing the name of the ground is we'd still call our ground Villa park but the media and everybody else would use the new name. Not against sponsorship for the new north stand and be a good reason to rid the Witton of that horrible graffiti.
chris the villan
Ah - the press have to do something to find news, and if it doesn't exist, then create it it would seem. I think we should all be used to that mindset by now. For me, I feel so encouraged by the new setup at VP that if anything like this was being proposed, I feel sure there would be some referral to the fans first. BTW, JF - "precedent", not "president" - or was that a Freudian slip?!
the_lergy
If I remember correctly, the majority of sponsored grounds are actually ones that have been built to replace old ones. Emirates, Ricoh, Reebok, JJB...
They were never likely to be called anything other than the sponsor's name.
As long as we stay at our current location then it will always be Villa Park.
Oh, and Fear, have a bit of ambition! Forget Tag Heuer, go for someone like Patek Phillipe or Jaeger Le Coutre
maundy
So Villa Park it remains then. If ever a name change was a distinct possibility, it was no doubt when under the direction and control of the previous regime. How close I wonder was 'The Doug Ellis Stadium' to becoming a reality?
glensider
Old news. Untrue. Move on. UTV
voiceoftheholte
Tag is where I start and stop on watches, I just love them!
The Fear
Change the name when we move to a new stadium, which will obviously happen somewhere down the road.
glensider
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