World Cup-winning England goalkeeper Gordon Banks has criticised the decision to move the National Football Museum to Manchester.
The football legend said he was ‘saddened’ to hear that the game’s treasures, housed at Preston’s Deepdale ground since 2001, are to be relocated.
As revealed in the M.E.N, the
museum is to be moved to Urbis in Manchester.
Bosses hope it will attract up to 400,000 visitors every year – four times more than at present.
The final whistle was blown on Preston last week after last-ditch talks failed over a deal for the two cities to share exhibits.
Banks, an inaugural member of the museum’s Hall of Fame, said: “This is a sad day.
“I believe Preston has far more right to the museum than Manchester.
“Preston was where the Football League began, Preston North End were one of the founder clubs and they were the first winners.
“Manchester might be a bigger city but, in terms of football history, it doesn’t deserve to have the museum ahead of Preston.”
The museum at Preston closes on Friday. Urbis is currently closed but reopens as the football museum in summer 2011.
Mr Banks, 72, speaking at the launch of England’s ‘Pride, Passion, Party’ merchandise ahead of the World Cup in South Africa, said: “Why should a big city have something like this? Originally it was decided to have it in Preston, it was the people there who thought up the idea.
“I can’t for the life of me think why it should have to move, just because Manchester is a bigger city and might get more visitors. Big cities have got most things and smaller cities like Preston ought to have their little coups.”
Fran Toms, Head of Strategic Cultural Projects for Manchester City Council, said: "We were approached by the trustees of the National Football Museum with a proposal for it to move to Manchester to guarantee its long-term sustainable future.
“Manchester is England's most visited city outside London, one of the world's leading football cities, and we expect the National Football Museum at Urbis to attract four times as many visitors as it did previously.
"The National Football Museum at Urbis will offer an exciting new interpretation of the museum's world-class collection, building on the successes and creative approach of Urbis, as well enabling more of that collection to go on display and we look forward to its opening next year."
Tweet
Comments
Login or Register to comment
“Manchester might be a bigger city but, in terms of football history, it doesn’t deserve to have the museum ahead of Preston.”
_________________________________________________________________________
Yes Gordon, quite. When you say Manchester when people ask you're from abroad you often get the reply 'Oh Manchester is that the place near that great Footballing mecca of Preston?'
“I can’t for the life of me think why it should have to move, just because Manchester is a bigger city and might get more visitors. Big cities have got most things and smaller cities like Preston ought to have their little coups.”
________________________________________________________________________
Yes, who needs any of those pesky extra visitors? A museum is not to be visited, a museum is just meant to 'be'.
Gordon- The Football League was formally created and named in Manchester at a meeting on 17 April at the Royal Hotel. Thanks.
This guy sold his World Cup winner's medal, that's how much respect he has for tradition and heritage.
Has GB any cup final tickets?
Maybe not...
Sad for Preston, but Manchester is a better location.
The rules of the game were drawn up by a bunch of ex public schoolboys in the Freemasons' Tavern, Long Acre, London. So if we're going on "history" Gordon, the National Football Museum should be based in LONDON!!
Surely if four times as many people visit the museum in Manchester than they did in Preston then it's got to be worthwhile moving it?
Yes, Preston have their football history but can it match ours? I think not.
Urbis should be an art and cultural centre. It should be a gallery for modern art because Manchester does not have one. Shame to see Manchester dumbing down like this.
Urbis needs to undergo a name change so it doesn't sound like a toilet cleaner.
Also and I have said this before - it should house the tiddlewinks museum.
Urbis is fantastic on the outside, but practically and aesthetically, it isn't successful on the inside.
I think the internal design worked against it from the start. Nonetheless, they got on with providing exciting and stimulating exhibitions and Urbis became an important part of cultural Manchester.
It's sad and tragic that it's now going to be a football museum.
Not because it doesn't deserve to be in Manchester, but because we've had an inappropriate building stolen from us to house it. Why couldn't they have built one where the failed casino was going to be?
We have lost so much potential to turn Urbis into the creative / digital beacon of the city it could and should have been with more thought and time. The council needed the courage and the foresight to stand by what Urbis stood for and developed it further to capitalise on our history as the birthplace of the computer. Urbis and Manchester deserved this.
A Short sighted and a rash decision in recession times. Stupid Fools.
"Urbis needs to undergo a name change so it doesn't sound like a toilet cleaner.
Also and I have said this before - it should house the tiddlewinks museum." - The Warlock, Of Fire Top Mountain
It's often been said you are king of the winkers...
Yes Gordon, let it stay in a smaller City and not grow, develop, challenge, expand and be appreciated by many more people but without being totally lost in london. It will then stagnate, fade out and amount to nothing: just like your club career with the smaller Cities of stoke and leicster (can't beleive they have City status). This decision should be celebrated, Manchester has a far richer history and future in every department.
What's preston got going for it? Seriously, have you been there? Tin pot good for nothing town, I was embarassed for the place.
There's no room for sentiment here. Preston has and deserves it's place in football history but as a geographical location it will never usurp Manchester which is the central hub in a conerbation of over 2m people, plus the fact it houses 2 football clubs that attract a combined average of over 130000 for it's home matches. The potential for it to attract more visitors is what makes it viable. Sorry Gordon, you are a legend but romantics don't work in business.
"...just like your club career with the smaller Cities of stoke and leicster (can't beleive they have City status)....." - Hands of Stone, Southside, Manchester UK
Why exactly cant you believe that these two places have city status? The former was granted city status when it was the industrial heart of Great Britain, and the latter is one of the oldest cities in England with settlements going back thousands of years, not to mention the fact that both have large and diverse population bases. If you ask me these two cities are far more deserving of their city status than ceremonial cities such as Wells and Ely.
"What's preston got going for it? Seriously, have you been there? Tin pot good for nothing town, I was embarassed for the place."
Given that you are so interested in which areas have city status I would have thought that you'd be aware that Preston is in fact a city, not a town.
With regard to the museum I feel bad for Preston as it is a huge blow for them to lose such an attraction, however given that it could quadruple the number of visitors it seems like a bit of a no-brainer to me. Museums are built to be visited.
4 times what preston offers.....its a no brainer it should be in manchester from the start........
Lets not forget the international airport and location between Merseyside, South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire which between them have a population of around 6 million
SORRY GORDON I GO WITH MANCHESTER
Hmmm Manchester or Preston, Manchester or Preston? Well as a Manc born and bred, I have to say Manchester, IF the FA, Preston, English tourist board, English heritage etc had all done their job, Preston would not be losing this important museum. As for Urbis. Well what's wrong with leaving the "art" in Urbis and stimulating more employment by building a museum/hotel/footballing centre (or ???). Just keep it away from the overly busy town centre.
Intersting argument many of you put forward that since Manchester is bigger and more famous it should have this museum, not Preston,
The logical extension of course would be to move it to London, which is bigger again and gets more visitors
It should have remained in Preston. Just what sort of footballing atmosphere does Urbis provide over Deepdale?? Parking was superb as was the museum itself. I live in Southwest Manchester and know just how bad the centre of Manchester is. I doubt I will ever visit the museum again which is very sad. It was based in Preston after many months of claims and counter-claims so why suddenly does Urbis have a claim? Urbis - just what on earth has that place got to do with the history of football?
Urbis should be an art and cultural centre. It should be a gallery for modern art because Manchester does not have one. Shame to see Manchester dumbing down like this.
source de sagesse, Manchester"
Bumbing down like what? Modern art looks like its produced by three years old given unlimited paint and five minutes alone, how can they possible dumb down from this.
Intersting argument many of you put forward that since Manchester is bigger and more famous it should have this museum, not Preston, The logical extension of course would be to move it to London, which is bigger again and gets more visitors
citycentre, manchester"
Not got as good a footballing history down there unlike up here in the northwest which is the logical choice for the home of football.