The Bristol Rovers stadium saga and what the Gas should do next 'I don't think there's any doubts now that new stadiums work the oracle. I was very fortunate to be the manager that led Rotherham United into the New York Stadium.' Comments Sport Will Murray Bristol Rovers Reporter 11:59, 25 Apr 2026 View Image Steve Evans on The Memorial Stadium - Photo: Tom Sandberg/PPAUK and Kara Thomas/PPAUK (Image: Tom Sandberg/PPAUK and Kara Thomas/PPAUK) It has been one of Bristol's longest running sagas - the future of Bristol Rovers ' Memorial Ground home - and what comes next. For decades, the Memorial Stadium has been the soul of Bristol Rovers, but a familiar, nagging question has returned to the fore, has the "Mem" finally reached its ceiling and what should be its future. Owner Hussain Al-Saeed hasn’t been shy about his ambitions to modernize the club’s home. But the reality of redeveloping an aging ground hemmed in by residential streets makes any decision over what to do difficult. The club has spent upwards of £420,000 on feasibility studies, only for consultants to return a series of "red flags." And while Al-Saeed admitted that while the club isn't giving up on the Mem yet, they are officially "exploring" alternatives. So should the Gas say goodbye to the Mem in pursuit of a modern future - if one can be achieved as multiple plans to relocate have fallen through already, or should the club fight through the "red flags" to stay in the heart of BS7? "I don't think there's any doubts now that new stadiums work the oracle," said manager Steve Evans when discussing whether Bristol Rovers should redevelop The Mem or look for a new stadium elsewhere. While the manager acknowledged that he "doesn't have an opinion" on whether the club should redevelop The Mem or not, he spoke about the benefits of building a new stadium during his first spell at Rotherham United. "I don't think there's any doubts now that new stadiums work the oracle," the 63-year-old said. "I was very fortunate to be the manager that led Rotherham United into the New York Stadium. From compared to the previous stadium, and it was just black and white. It was night and day. It was, call it what you like. "The change, the transformation, the increased attendances, the operation of increased hospitality, which increased revenue, which increased being able to move better players into the squad. "There is no debate for me, but I just don't know whether the Mem would be the right place, the right time to be able to make it like that, if it wasn't, I don't have an opinion on it really. "I just want it to be a better opportunity for the club to have the opportunity to get more seats in the stadium, more people in the stadium and more revenue to sign better players." This topic has been a longstanding issue in Rovers' history, with numerous failed stadium and redevelopment projects in the last few decades. Sign up for our Rovers newsletter Bristol Rovers have Steve Evans now in charge as they look to battle push up the League Two table - and you won't miss a beat with our free newsletter. All the latest news, views, interviews, gossip and analysis concerning the Gas, delivered straight to your inbox. It's completely free and you can sign up HERE A High Court battle over a deal with Sainsbury's to buy the Mem took place in 2011, while a separate plan to build a 21,000-seater stadium at the University of West of England was abandoned in 2017. The latest stadium project that was brought to an end was the Fruit Market site in October 2023. Two months after Chairman Hussain AlSaeed invested in the club, he confirmed that he would look to redevelop The Mem rather than build a new stadium at the Fruit Market site. These proposals included increasing capacities in the East Stand and Thatcher's End (North Stand) to raise the overall capacity to 16,000-17,000.While supporters were in the redeveloped South Stand in December 2023, AlSaeed confirmed in an interview with the club's media team in January 2026 that "red flags" had arisen when looking to redevelop The Mem, with Rovers now "also looking at other options" for a new stadium. Speaking to BBC Radio Bristol in March 2026 , CEO Ritchie Bates said: "And again, what I've sort of taken from this club over the sort of the last 18 months is that the stadium is probably the number one priority for everybody." While Bates said that the club are not back to square one in terms of redeveloping The Mem, he added "there's nothing off the table" in terms of the club looking at other potential stadium sites. As Evans mentioned above, he has seen the benefits of moving into a new stadium, as Rotherham's new home, the New York Stadium, opened in 2012 after they departed the Millmoor Ground in 2008. He then helped the club win back-to-back promotions to the Championship before leaving in September 2015. The stadium issue is not new to Rovers, and with the most recent plans to redevelop The Mem coming back with "red flags", it is a problem that will likely rumble on in the years to come. In terms of whether he thinks Rovers should look to redevelop The Mem or build a new stadium on a different site, former club legend Steve Elliott said: "It's a tough one, isn't it, really? I mean, we had it at Derby County. We moved from the Baseball Ground to Pride Park, and everyone was like, why are we moving from the Baseball Ground, as it’s been our home since 1868, whatever it is. "And it's just one of them. You look at it, and you think, new chapter, new beginning. The rebirth of a club, really. "I mean, a prime example is Brighton. I remember playing down at Brighton at the Withdean, which was a running track, and a few little temporary stands in a clubhouse. The changing rooms are porta cabins, and, obviously, Tony Bloom came in there, and built a new stadium, and look at them now, the Premier League. "My heart would say, I'd love them to move. And I thought that site down near Filton Airport would have been perfect for them, just off the motorway, quite accessible. But, yeah, I think it's time. I think they should move." On the other hand, former legend Chris Lines has a different viewpoint. When asked about this dilemma, Lines said: "I feel like when I was first breaking through, there were plans for a new stadium, and that was what, 20 years ago. "So, it's been ongoing, and it's nice to finally see the training ground sorted. I was very jealous when I went down and saw that, because we never really had a proper training ground. Every spell I had at the club, we'd train at different places, but it was never a proper training ground. "I love The Mem. I think just keep The Mem. I just think that the atmosphere is brilliant. Teams hate going to play there. The pitch is lovely. Yes, it looks a bit old-fashioned in places, but you can't beat that terrace behind the goal and the atmosphere that it creates. I always said, like, just keep it. "You build a 15, 20,000 stadium and everyone sat down, and it all looks a bit more kind of professional, doesn’t it? And teams, then, they're not in that kind of cauldron atmosphere down at The Mem. And we used that to our advantage many a time, and teams hated coming to play there. So, yeah, keep The Mem as it is." Article continues below Bristol Rovers Live on Whatsapp Join Bristol Rovers Live's Whatsapp community for all the biggest Bristol Rovers stories sent straight to your phone Bristol Rovers Live is now on WhatsApp and we want you to join our community. 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Curated by Taleb Kabbara · Source: www.bristolpost.co.uk