Arsenal Football Club have scored an embarrassing own goal in their bid to sell off memorabilia from their ground. They have been forced to abandon plans to sell 38,500 seats from Highbury to fans, because small traces of toxic metals have been found in them. The seats were to be sold at around £20 each after Arsenal played their final game at Highbury before moving to their new 60,000-seater Emirates Stadium. A spokesman for the club said that although the seats are completely safe when located in a stadium, if they are stored indoors and used regularly over a long period of time there is a slight risk that very small amounts of cadmium could be released. They therefore cannot be sold for domestic use.
The club have apologised to disappointed fans and reimbursed all those who placed an order. They have reminded us though, that we can still buy a square patch of the Highbury pitch for £25, which is apparently free from toxic substances.
