Elton John gig to raise around £600,000 for players (From Watford Observer)
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Elton John concert expected to raise £600,000 for Watford manager Malky Mackay
3:40pm Friday 4th June 2010 in Sport
By Frank Smith, Deputy Group Sports Editor
Elton John concert expected to raise £600,000 for Watford manager Malky Mackay. Picture: PIPPA DOUGLAS
Julian Winter has thanked Elton John for providing Watford fans with one of the “most memorable nights” seen at Vicarage Road and for raising approximately £600,000 for player signings.
Watford’s honorary life president entertained almost 20,000 fans for more than two hours on Saturday night as he went through his impressive repertoire of hits.
The club’s former chairman offered to host the concert to raise money for player acquisitions this summer.
It is unclear exactly how much it cost Watford to host the event but it was previously estimated to be around £600,000 and the Hornets’ chief executive hopes to receive a similar amount in profit.
Winter said: “We are hopeful of clearing approximately £600,000 profit for the Elton John concert, although a full and final figure is not yet available as we finalise the full costs of delivering the concert.”
Watford’s wage bill has once again been cut and a number of the Hornets’ higher earners have left the club this summer.
Malky Mackay is expected to once again rely heavily on younger players next season due to the club’s financial position and Winter has expressed how important Elton’s cash injection will be.
“The proceeds are a fantastic boost to the club’s player acquisition plans for the summer,” the chief executive said.
“We all know Elton was keen to support the club in difficult times, for which we are all tremendously grateful, and the funds will be a massive boost to Malky as he seeks to recruit new players to develop the squad for the coming season.”
Watford sold all the tickets they were able to, which made the attendance 19,645.
There were 8,313 supporters on the pitch and the club’s decision to hand them all waterproof ponchos paid off as the rain fell for the support acts and at the beginning of Elton’s set.
But Michael Jones, head of ticketing at the club, said the weather was almost the only thing which went wrong on the night.
Jones said: “From our point of view it was a really interesting experience to go through because it is outside our comfort zones to host concerts, but we are delighted with how well it all went.
“There were not really any issues on the night.
“It was a bit disappointing it rained for a bit but other than that everything else was perfect. We are absolutely delighted.”
Elton was twice chairman of Watford and, along with Graham Taylor, helped guide the club from the old Fourth Division into European football and an FA Cup final.
It is the third concert the singer-songwriter has held at Vicarage Road, after gigs in 1974 and 2005, and Saturday was his only date in the UK this year.
Elton is a life-long Watford fan and delivered a number of passionate speeches to the crowd on Saturday night and Winter said the crowd appreciated how special the concert was to the 63-year-old.
Winter said: “The whole club would like to place on record its gratitude to Elton, his band and management team for agreeing to the concert at Vicarage Road and for delivering one of the most memorable nights we can remember at the Vic.
“The atmosphere was unforgettable and the performance truly exceptional – the fans could sense that the night meant something special to Elton – a feeling that the fans responded to in kind.
“The club is lucky to have such a committed star performer that is willing to support the club in this wonderful way.”
The Watford Observer understands there are currently no plans to release Saturday’s concert on DVD.
Elton’s management company are in charge of any release and the decision is out of the club’s control.
The 2005 concert was released on DVD but only to Elton’s fan club members.
Comments(15)
duckfan10
says...
6:42pm Fri 4 Jun 10
RookeryEnd
says...
10:40pm Fri 4 Jun 10
duckfan10 wrote:Well said Duck.
EJ........ a true WFC supporter.
Saw this link on another forum and think it says it all. http://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=HC-klXN02
4k
We all know EJ was angry at how we wasted money in the Prem but is clearly even more pi**ed off following the Russo's trying to put us in administration.
Thank God these idiots have gone and what a shame both GT and EJ have had to risk the little bullies vengenance when telling us the truth.
Very interested to see if they put money into the rights issue. They probably will to get a bit of interest having spent the last year doing just that with no personal investment whatsoever.
Good riddance to the parasites. How good does it feel to have the intergrity of GT as Chairman and a worldwide superstar genuinely behind the people in the club again. Makes you realise how lucky and unique Watford really is!
WFC4ever
says...
11:21pm Fri 4 Jun 10
BTW Nice World Cup preview mag in the WO today.
Good work...more informative and fair minded (ie articles about ALL teams rather than just the big nations)
Mind you I noticed it had an interivew with Ferdinand about how he was going to keep fit etc!
OPPS...not your fault ofcourse.
Blame the big lump Heskey (Not sure I'd even want him up front for us...!)
stevyweavy
says...
6:45pm Sat 5 Jun 10
WFC4ever
says...
8:49pm Sat 5 Jun 10
I presume some money we raised as you suggest would have been spent elsewhere setting up the concert etc.
saracen1971
says...
9:38pm Sat 5 Jun 10
scottwfc
says...
9:49pm Sat 5 Jun 10
stevyweavy wrote:Give it a rest Stevy, and try a little research before you start trolling. The club have stated on more than one occasion that the cost of staging this event was around 600K, leaving them £600K profit. Its not that hard to understand now is it.
£600,000 OK but where's the rest of it? 20,000 at minimum price of £55 is over a million and that's not taking into account any profit on drinks / food etc in the ground. Total ticket sales must be around £1.3 - £1.5 million. Maximum cost for event should have been maximum £250k so money for players ahould be over £1m. Looks like another con. Watford using £500k to pay off yet more debts I guess. I am sure Elton can do the figures andmight like to ask why so little available for players. Great concert Elton!!!
stevyweavy
says...
11:55am Sun 6 Jun 10
scottwfc wrote:Tell you what, if Watford FC come up with the figures to justify the £600k I will give it a rest. But if that cost £600k to put on then most concerts would never go ahead because they'd never be able to make any money. There is no way that should / could have net cost the club anywhere near £600k. I bet Elton picked up most of the costs for the stage and lighting materials and staff.
stevyweavy wrote: £600,000 OK but where's the rest of it? 20,000 at minimum price of £55 is over a million and that's not taking into account any profit on drinks / food etc in the ground. Total ticket sales must be around £1.3 - £1.5 million. Maximum cost for event should have been maximum £250k so money for players ahould be over £1m. Looks like another con. Watford using £500k to pay off yet more debts I guess. I am sure Elton can do the figures andmight like to ask why so little available for players. Great concert Elton!!!Give it a rest Stevy, and try a little research before you start trolling. The club have stated on more than one occasion that the cost of staging this event was around 600K, leaving them £600K profit. Its not that hard to understand now is it.
scottwfc
says...
1:49pm Sun 6 Jun 10
stevyweavy wrote:Tell you what if you can prove it didn't cost £600k, I'll leave you alone.
scottwfc wrote:Tell you what, if Watford FC come up with the figures to justify the £600k I will give it a rest. But if that cost £600k to put on then most concerts would never go ahead because they'd never be able to make any money. There is no way that should / could have net cost the club anywhere near £600k. I bet Elton picked up most of the costs for the stage and lighting materials and staff.stevyweavy wrote: £600,000 OK but where's the rest of it? 20,000 at minimum price of £55 is over a million and that's not taking into account any profit on drinks / food etc in the ground. Total ticket sales must be around £1.3 - £1.5 million. Maximum cost for event should have been maximum £250k so money for players ahould be over £1m. Looks like another con. Watford using £500k to pay off yet more debts I guess. I am sure Elton can do the figures andmight like to ask why so little available for players. Great concert Elton!!!Give it a rest Stevy, and try a little research before you start trolling. The club have stated on more than one occasion that the cost of staging this event was around 600K, leaving them £600K profit. Its not that hard to understand now is it.
Making assumptions based on little or no knowledge is easy. If you have the contacts to set up a gig like that for more than half the going rate, please let us know where they are.
I've spent a couple of years in stadium management in the past, and can easily see where the costs come from.
Specialist pitch covering,
seat hire,
extensive structural support work to East Stand,
construction/transpo
rt costs,
merchandising/advert
ising costs,
security hire,
pa hire,
numerous council licensing costs.
Believe me it all adds up. Just because Elton and his band waived their fees and rights to the profits doesn't mean there are no costs.
So please try backing your paranoia up with some hard facts before inflicting your opinions on the rest of us.
FelixTheHorn
says...
9:09pm Sun 6 Jun 10
He's another one of those negative morons, who need to go elsewhere.
COYH!
stevyweavy
says...
12:47pm Wed 9 Jun 10
scottwfc wrote:Sir Elton last staged a concert at Vicarage Road in June 2005 which raised around £1.3m for the Buy Back the Vic campaign now 2010£600k how things have changed.
stevyweavy wrote:Tell you what if you can prove it didn't cost £600k, I'll leave you alone. Making assumptions based on little or no knowledge is easy. If you have the contacts to set up a gig like that for more than half the going rate, please let us know where they are. I've spent a couple of years in stadium management in the past, and can easily see where the costs come from. Specialist pitch covering, seat hire, extensive structural support work to East Stand, construction/transpo rt costs, merchandising/advert ising costs, security hire, pa hire, numerous council licensing costs. Believe me it all adds up. Just because Elton and his band waived their fees and rights to the profits doesn't mean there are no costs. So please try backing your paranoia up with some hard facts before inflicting your opinions on the rest of us.scottwfc wrote:Tell you what, if Watford FC come up with the figures to justify the £600k I will give it a rest. But if that cost £600k to put on then most concerts would never go ahead because they'd never be able to make any money. There is no way that should / could have net cost the club anywhere near £600k. I bet Elton picked up most of the costs for the stage and lighting materials and staff.stevyweavy wrote: £600,000 OK but where's the rest of it? 20,000 at minimum price of £55 is over a million and that's not taking into account any profit on drinks / food etc in the ground. Total ticket sales must be around £1.3 - £1.5 million. Maximum cost for event should have been maximum £250k so money for players ahould be over £1m. Looks like another con. Watford using £500k to pay off yet more debts I guess. I am sure Elton can do the figures andmight like to ask why so little available for players. Great concert Elton!!!Give it a rest Stevy, and try a little research before you start trolling. The club have stated on more than one occasion that the cost of staging this event was around 600K, leaving them £600K profit. Its not that hard to understand now is it.
Hocus
says...
12:20am Thu 10 Jun 10
stevyweavy wrote:Cant you just be a little bit more grateful?! money is money and WFC need some more of it. This is a helping hand isnt it?
scottwfc wrote:Sir Elton last staged a concert at Vicarage Road in June 2005 which raised around £1.3m for the Buy Back the Vic campaign now 2010£600k how things have changed.
stevyweavy wrote:Tell you what if you can prove it didn't cost £600k, I'll leave you alone. Making assumptions based on little or no knowledge is easy. If you have the contacts to set up a gig like that for more than half the going rate, please let us know where they are. I've spent a couple of years in stadium management in the past, and can easily see where the costs come from. Specialist pitch covering, seat hire, extensive structural support work to East Stand, construction/transpo rt costs, merchandising/advert ising costs, security hire, pa hire, numerous council licensing costs. Believe me it all adds up. Just because Elton and his band waived their fees and rights to the profits doesn't mean there are no costs. So please try backing your paranoia up with some hard facts before inflicting your opinions on the rest of us.scottwfc wrote:Tell you what, if Watford FC come up with the figures to justify the £600k I will give it a rest. But if that cost £600k to put on then most concerts would never go ahead because they'd never be able to make any money. There is no way that should / could have net cost the club anywhere near £600k. I bet Elton picked up most of the costs for the stage and lighting materials and staff.stevyweavy wrote: £600,000 OK but where's the rest of it? 20,000 at minimum price of £55 is over a million and that's not taking into account any profit on drinks / food etc in the ground. Total ticket sales must be around £1.3 - £1.5 million. Maximum cost for event should have been maximum £250k so money for players ahould be over £1m. Looks like another con. Watford using £500k to pay off yet more debts I guess. I am sure Elton can do the figures andmight like to ask why so little available for players. Great concert Elton!!!Give it a rest Stevy, and try a little research before you start trolling. The club have stated on more than one occasion that the cost of staging this event was around 600K, leaving them £600K profit. Its not that hard to understand now is it.
stevyweavy
says...
4:31pm Thu 10 Jun 10
Hocus wrote:I am grateful for everything we can get. My concern is purely to ensure that the goodwill and effort put in by Elton and the money raised does in fact all go to where Elton wanted it to go. If all profits were supposed to go to buying players then my point is that it would be unfair and against Elton's wishes if some of the money then goes to paying off other debts.
stevyweavy wrote:Cant you just be a little bit more grateful?! money is money and WFC need some more of it. This is a helping hand isnt it?scottwfc wrote:Sir Elton last staged a concert at Vicarage Road in June 2005 which raised around £1.3m for the Buy Back the Vic campaign now 2010£600k how things have changed.stevyweavy wrote:Tell you what if you can prove it didn't cost £600k, I'll leave you alone. Making assumptions based on little or no knowledge is easy. If you have the contacts to set up a gig like that for more than half the going rate, please let us know where they are. I've spent a couple of years in stadium management in the past, and can easily see where the costs come from. Specialist pitch covering, seat hire, extensive structural support work to East Stand, construction/transpo rt costs, merchandising/advert ising costs, security hire, pa hire, numerous council licensing costs. Believe me it all adds up. Just because Elton and his band waived their fees and rights to the profits doesn't mean there are no costs. So please try backing your paranoia up with some hard facts before inflicting your opinions on the rest of us.scottwfc wrote:Tell you what, if Watford FC come up with the figures to justify the £600k I will give it a rest. But if that cost £600k to put on then most concerts would never go ahead because they'd never be able to make any money. There is no way that should / could have net cost the club anywhere near £600k. I bet Elton picked up most of the costs for the stage and lighting materials and staff.stevyweavy wrote: £600,000 OK but where's the rest of it? 20,000 at minimum price of £55 is over a million and that's not taking into account any profit on drinks / food etc in the ground. Total ticket sales must be around £1.3 - £1.5 million. Maximum cost for event should have been maximum £250k so money for players ahould be over £1m. Looks like another con. Watford using £500k to pay off yet more debts I guess. I am sure Elton can do the figures andmight like to ask why so little available for players. Great concert Elton!!!Give it a rest Stevy, and try a little research before you start trolling. The club have stated on more than one occasion that the cost of staging this event was around 600K, leaving them £600K profit. Its not that hard to understand now is it.
scottwfc
says...
12:42pm Fri 11 Jun 10
stevyweavy wrote:Yes Mr Weavy, things have changed. Back in 2005, the specialist ground covering that protects the pitch wasn't used. The main stand wasn't condemed and could be used properly for all the backstage support needed, without the signifcant structural support work needed this time.
Hocus wrote:I am grateful for everything we can get. My concern is purely to ensure that the goodwill and effort put in by Elton and the money raised does in fact all go to where Elton wanted it to go. If all profits were supposed to go to buying players then my point is that it would be unfair and against Elton's wishes if some of the money then goes to paying off other debts.stevyweavy wrote:Cant you just be a little bit more grateful?! money is money and WFC need some more of it. This is a helping hand isnt it?scottwfc wrote:Sir Elton last staged a concert at Vicarage Road in June 2005 which raised around £1.3m for the Buy Back the Vic campaign now 2010£600k how things have changed.stevyweavy wrote:Tell you what if you can prove it didn't cost £600k, I'll leave you alone. Making assumptions based on little or no knowledge is easy. If you have the contacts to set up a gig like that for more than half the going rate, please let us know where they are. I've spent a couple of years in stadium management in the past, and can easily see where the costs come from. Specialist pitch covering, seat hire, extensive structural support work to East Stand, construction/transpo rt costs, merchandising/advert ising costs, security hire, pa hire, numerous council licensing costs. Believe me it all adds up. Just because Elton and his band waived their fees and rights to the profits doesn't mean there are no costs. So please try backing your paranoia up with some hard facts before inflicting your opinions on the rest of us.scottwfc wrote:Tell you what, if Watford FC come up with the figures to justify the £600k I will give it a rest. But if that cost £600k to put on then most concerts would never go ahead because they'd never be able to make any money. There is no way that should / could have net cost the club anywhere near £600k. I bet Elton picked up most of the costs for the stage and lighting materials and staff.stevyweavy wrote: £600,000 OK but where's the rest of it? 20,000 at minimum price of £55 is over a million and that's not taking into account any profit on drinks / food etc in the ground. Total ticket sales must be around £1.3 - £1.5 million. Maximum cost for event should have been maximum £250k so money for players ahould be over £1m. Looks like another con. Watford using £500k to pay off yet more debts I guess. I am sure Elton can do the figures andmight like to ask why so little available for players. Great concert Elton!!!Give it a rest Stevy, and try a little research before you start trolling. The club have stated on more than one occasion that the cost of staging this event was around 600K, leaving them £600K profit. Its not that hard to understand now is it.
When you also add in the fact that prices do actually go up over the course of 5 years, any reasonably intelligent person can see where the differences are.
Ah, I think I see now where your problem is......
Mick, Bray says...
4:41pm Fri 4 Jun 10
It beggars belief how Hoofroyd was allowed to waste 8 Million on NE & JM in Fees and wages!!