Liverpool set to earn more from boxes than seats

(GETTY IMAGES)

Liverpool will make more money from corporate boxes than new supporters when they finally move to their new 60,000-seater stadium in Stanley Park, the club said today.

Ian Ayre, Liverpool's commercial director, said it was estimated more than 50 percent of income on match days will come from the sale of seats in corporate boxes rather than the increased numbers in mainstream seating.

The new stadium will increase corporate seating from 3,000 currently at Anfield to 10,000. Liverpool has 40,000 season ticket holders with a waiting list of a further 65,000.

"The new stadium is clearly a business opportunity. But it will be important to maintain the integrity of the Liverpool brand and fan experience at Anfield," Ayre said during a seminar on stadium commercial opportunities in Johannesburg.

Central to the new stadium is the preservation of the famous Kop, packed each week by home fans.

It will increase from 12,000 seats to 20,000, around the same number the Kop attracted when it was standing room only."

Ayre stood by the club's decision to delay the construction of the stadium until the global credit crunch eases.

"It's been a strange period but our decision to delay construction was certainly the right one," he added. "We have since seen the costs come down."