Least Surprising Announcement of the Day: Liverpool FC Not Going With HKS's Stadium

Seems like forever ago we were getting our first look at the then-£300-million Stanley Park stadium Tom Hicks was promising to build for his, um, beloved Liverpool FC; ah, the good ol' days -- January 2008, before the cracks gave way to the complete cave-in. Back then, though, Hicks gave...

By Robert Wilonsky

January 17, 2012

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Seems like forever ago we were getting our first look at the then-£300-million Stanley Park stadium Tom Hicks was promising to build for his, um, beloved Liverpool FC; ah, the good ol' days -- January 2008, before the cracks gave way to the complete cave-in. Back then, though, Hicks gave the gig to McKinney Ave.-based HKS, designers of JerryWorld, the American Airlines Center, Lone Star Park and Pizza Hut Park. The Reds' stadium was to be its own brand of special -- 60,000 seats beneath an opening in the roof, how Texas Stadium.

And while the new ownership, Fenway Sports Group, also hasn't delivered on a new stadium -- John Henry's said to evaluating a £150-million sponsorship deal, not to mention trying to decide where to build -- one thing's for sure as of today: "The futuristic HKS stadium plans, with an estimated cost of £400 million ... have now been consigned to the waste bin." Shocking.

But that reminds me: Whatever happened to Hicks's long-promised lawsuit over that "epic swindle"? Last I heard Hicks and his legal team were going to England to consider the next move, but that was a while back. I've made some calls. I'll update if there's anything to report.

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