New Trafford Stadium

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New Trafford Stadium
New Trafford Stadium
Location Old Trafford
Greater Manchester, England
M16 0RA
Coordinates 53°27′48″N2°17′48″W / 53.463333°N 2.296667°W / 53.463333; -2.296667
Owner Manchester United F.C.
OperatorManchester United F.C.
Capacity 100,000 [1]
Construction
Construction cost£2 billion (estimated) [1]
Architect Foster + Partners [1]

New Trafford Stadium is the name given by the architects Foster + Partners to a potential new stadium for Manchester United that would replace Old Trafford, their home stadium since 1910. [1]

Contents

In 2025 the club announced plans designed by Foster + Partners for a 100,000-seater stadium under a canopy. [1] Manchester United hope to move to the stadium in time for the 2030–31 football season. [2] Foster + Partners referred to the new stadium as "New Trafford Stadium" in a fact sheet. [3]

The area around the stadium is likely to be subject to regeneration and development, possibly involving a public–private partnership. [3] Jim Ratcliffe said that the construction would depend on "how quickly the government get going with their regeneration programme". [3] Omar Berrada, the chief executive of Manchester United, said that "the stadium in isolation doesn't make sense without the wider regeneration project". [2] The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, said in January 2025 that she supported the regeneration of the area around Old Trafford. [2]

Location

The new stadium will be built next to Old Trafford. [3]

History

In 2021 Manchester United looked into redeveloping Old Trafford, having not done any major work since 2006. [4] [5] In 2023 the stadium was left off the list for hosting Euro 2028 matches due to being unable to say whether it would be available for the competition. [6] [7] The stadium had a roof leak against Arsenal in May 2024 with similar occurrences in 2023, 2019 and 2012. [8] [9] [10]

In February 2024, Sir Jim Ratcliffe purchased a 27.7% stake in Manchester United. [11] In the same month, Trafford Council announced plans to redevelop the area around Old Trafford as part of the Trafford Wharfside Development Framework. [12] Following his purchase, Ratcliffe stated that he wanted to see a "national stadium in the north of England", rather than refurbish the existing stadium as it would not be perfect. [13] A taskforce made up of Lord Coe, Andy Burnham, Gary Neville, Sara Todd, academics, and members of a fans group explored whether to renovate the existing stadium or construct a new one. [14] When fans were surveyed, 52% were in favour of a new stadium rather than redevelopment. [15] In September 2024, the first images of the new stadium were published and it was reported that it could bring in £7.3 billion each year to the UK economy. [4]

The Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said that no public money would fund the stadium. [3] The area around the stadium is likely to be subject to regeneration and development, possibly involving a public–private partnership. [3] [16] Ratcliffe said that the construction would depend on "how quickly the government get going with their regeneration programme". [3] Omar Berrada, the chief executive of Manchester United, said that "the stadium in isolation doesn't make sense without the wider regeneration project". [2] The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, said in January 2025 that she supported the regeneration of the area around Old Trafford. [2]

In March 2025, it was announced that the club would build a proposed 100,000-seater arena, costing around £2 billion ($2.6 billion) designed by British architect Norman Foster. [17]

Design

The new stadium will be one of the tallest structures in Greater Manchester and the second-largest football stadium in Europe after Nou Camp in Barcelona. [3] It will have 100,000 seats, but its gross seating capacity will reach 104,000. [18] Hospitality will account for 15.5% of the seats. [3] It will feature a 'trident' of three masts; [2] the central mast will be 200 metres (660 ft) tall and feature a viewing platform. [2] The designs for the stadium feature a vast 126,000-square-metre (1,360,000 sq ft) canopy under which would be a commercial quarter of entertainment and commercial venues. [2] The pitch of the stadium will be 15.9 metres (52 ft) below ground level. [2]

Construction

Norman Foster of Foster + Partners has estimated that the construction will take five years. [3] It is planned to build the stadium with a modular construction, transporting materials along the Manchester Ship Canal. [3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Critchley, Mark; Whitwell, Laurie (11 March 2025). "Manchester United announce plans for new 100,000-capacity stadium". The Athletic . Retrieved 11 March 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 MacInnes, Paul (11 March 2025). "'Eiffel Tower of the north'? Manchester United unveil 100,000-seat new stadium project". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 March 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Man Utd new stadium plans Q&A: What happens to Old Trafford? Will they play elsewhere? How much will it cost?". Sky Sports . 11 March 2025. Retrieved 11 March 2025.
  4. 1 2 "Man Utd stadium plans: Will Sir Jim Ratcliffe build a new ground and what will it mean for Old Trafford?". Sky Sports. 23 September 2024. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  5. Stone, Simon (23 October 2021). "Manchester United in discussions over major redevelopment of Old Trafford". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  6. Stone, Simon (13 April 2023). "Old Trafford misses out as potential Euro 2028 host". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  7. "Why won't Manchester United's Old Trafford host Euro 2028 matches?". The Times of India. 10 October 2023. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  8. Jackson, Jamie (13 May 2024). "Manchester United failed to fix Old Trafford roof despite knowledge of leaks". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  9. Dawson, Rob (13 May 2024). "Old Trafford 'struggled to cope' with rainfall - Man Utd chiefs". ESPN. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  10. "Olympic football fans dodge deluge at Old Trafford - video". Manchester Evening News. 3 August 2012. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  11. "Manchester United: Sir Jim Ratcliffe's £1.25bn deal for 27.7% stake is completed". BBC Sport. 20 February 2024. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  12. Jackson, Nick; Gawne, Ewan (19 February 2024). "Manchester United backs plans for regeneration near ground". BBC News. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  13. Roan, Dan; Davis, Matt (21 February 2024). "Old Trafford redevelopment: Sir Jim Ratcliffe wants 'national stadium in the north'". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  14. "Manchester United: 'National stadium' task force unveiled". BBC News. 8 March 2024. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  15. Burnell, Paul (5 November 2024). "Majority of United fans favour new stadium - report". BBC News. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  16. Davies, Ethan (23 September 2024). "Manchester United new stadium: No public cash going on club's stadium plans - mayor". BBC News. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  17. Robson, James (11 March 2025). "Manchester United reveals plans for the 'world's greatest' soccer stadium to replace Old Trafford". Associated Press News. Retrieved 27 August 2025.
  18. Ewing, Lori (11 March 2025). "Man United plan to build 'world's greatest stadium' rather than refurbish Old Trafford". Reuters. Archived from the original on 15 March 2025. Retrieved 15 March 2025.