Arsenal Have A Problem They Need To Fix

Arsenal Have A Problem They Need To Fix

There's not much you can really fault this current Arsenal side for so far this season. The goals are going in, the defence is impeccable and they're leading in the Premier League and joint leaders in the Champions League, in which they've had a perfect start.

The only thing that comes to mind is an off pitch decision that needs addressing ASAP.

Speaking of perfect though, or at least near perfect, the club financials are at their historical peak. Over the summer, football finance expert Kieran Maguire spoke about Arsenal becoming the most profitable club in Premier League history. Fellow finance analyst, Greg Cordell, predicts that Arsenal's 24/25 combined matchday and commercial earnings may be around the £391m mark, when announced publicly.

🚨 @BBCSport:

“As the most profitable club in Premier League history, Arsenal could easily spend over £200m in the window and have no PSR concerns.”

Finance expert, @KieranMaguire. ✨ pic.twitter.com/fO7KHhnhnz

— Eduardo Hagn (@EduardoHagn) July 16, 2025

So this begs the question: what is a club that is recording record financial profitability and huge results both domestically and in Europe to do with all that money and success?

Well, at the moment talks surrounding an extension to the Emirates Stadium are ongoing. The aim is to increase the Gunners' home to a capacity of 70,000+ and modernise the stadium to supersede their local rivals Tottenham Hotspur as having the capital's premier club football stadium.

Amongst all the talks of stadium expansions, London Mayor Sadiq Khan has warned that there will be obstaclesthat the club need to overcome in their redevelopment plan. This all relates to planning permissions and council approval and general bureaucratic avenues that have to be followed when planning things like this.

It's not just financials and planning permission that Arsenal need to focus on during their potential stadium redevelopment though. There is another problem that has been plaguing the club for years and will hopefully, finally, be addressed with a stadium changeup.

That issue is the away fan allocation that is currently in place. I told you the problem is an overlooked one.

3000 Leicester fans at Arsenal tonight. (Via @lcfcawaydays_) #LCFC pic.twitter.com/ngSGzUyxoM

— The Away Fans (@theawayfans) April 26, 2017

The above post shows where the allocation currently is for visitors, and for those eagle-eyed readers, the post showing this was from 2017. Nothing has been changed about the away seating conundrum since then, despite persistent fan opposition and hopes of moving them.

The main issue stems from the impact that it has on the atmosphere, and, for the Emirates, this is something that is unfortunately far from an associated feature of the stadium.

Arsenal finally took action to improve the Emirates atmosphere!

Every fan had to return to their seats for the second half vs Atletico Madrid — no more watching from the concourse.

𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞… pic.twitter.com/0ZdkHUSbt8

— AFTV (@AFTVMedia) October 24, 2025

It's a massive irritation for most Arsenal fans that the away fans get given some of the best seats in the house. By being so close to the pitch, you can stir your players and build an atmosphere far easier, and even when outnumbered, this means away fans can give that vital boost to their side.

Many other teams in the league have solved this problem by simply sticking travelling fans as far away from the pitch as possible; think Newcastle or Leeds or West Ham (although admittedly everyone is miles away from the pitch at West Ham).

I understand that, logistically, you can't always do this. You have to be able to have stewards and security covering the travelling fans to avoid issues, but it's certainly an area that should be looked into for the Gunners.

I’m the back corner seat of Newcastle away end you couldn’t actually write it 😭😭 #NFFC pic.twitter.com/I7Y7gdTEE4

— bray (@maybebrayyy) October 5, 2025

For perspective, this is how far away from the pitch visitors are seated when they make the trip to St James' Park; in fact, it's so notoriously far away from the pitch fans often joke about having to train to climb the stairs before making the away day.

As much as jokes can be made about how far fans have to sit from the pitch, it's an incredibly effective strategy.

It's not a coincidence that both St James' Park and Elland Road are regarded as two of the best atmospheres in the country; of course, having good sets of fans helps, but increased ability to drown out the visiting fans is vital to this.

A title charge is very much on the cards at the Emirates, with the North London side currently positioning themselves as bookies' favourites for the title at 1.62 odds.

If the Gunners are hoping to try and establish a dynasty and become the dominant force in the league, much like Manchester City were for years, changing the away fans' allocation would be a step in the right direction. It would do wonders for establishing the stadium as the intimidating cauldron it has shown glimmers of being able to be.

Clearly the on-pitch abilities and play of the side are not an issue, but with how influential the details are in football nowadays, off-pitch factors such as how to improve atmosphere, like this, cannot afford to be continuously overlooked.

With stadium expansion plans appearing to be underway soon, what better time to look into and fix this one problem that has been plaguing the side for years?