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Manchester United are reportedly prepared to rip up plans to keep Old Trafford in the event they construct a new state-of-the-art stadium next door.
Since the completion of his 27.7% partial investment into the club, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has repeatedly stated his desire to build a brand new arena for the Red Devils, that would be regarded as “the Wembley of the North.”
It’s believed that the other option currently under consideration is the refurbishment of Old Trafford but it appears that a new ground is the preferred alternative.
A previous report covered by The Peoples Person revealed that if United were to build a new stadium, the club would potentially keep a scaled-down version of Old Trafford so that it could be used by the women’s and academy teams – a suggestion that was received well by the fanbase.
However, a fresh update provided by The Daily Mail now reveals that United’s iconic home is more likely to be demolished.
According to Chris Wheeler, “Manchester United are ready to abandon plans to keep Old Trafford if they build a new £2billion super-stadium next door.”
“It means United’s 114-year-old home will be bulldozed to the ground if they decide against redeveloping it and instead go with their preferred option of creating a 100,000-seater Wembley of the North.”
“Sources have told Mail Sport that they now realise it’s [preserving Old Trafford] unlikely to work, and what is effectively a separate stadium project would be too complex and cost hundreds of millions of pounds.”
Wheeler explains that United are of the opinion that a 30,000-seater Old Trafford may prove to be too high for the women’s and academy teams. As such, the Red Devils feel that they would be best served by constructing a 15,000-capacity stadium later in the future, which would house the women’s team.
This stadium can then be increased in size as the demand for women’s football grows.
The newspaper further notes that Ratcliffe has come to terms with the fact that United are unlikely to be boosted by public funding.
If the club receives government financial support, it’s likely to be for regenerating the area around Old Trafford rather than constructing the new stadium itself, which is estimated to cost a staggering £2 billion.
Ratcliffe is reportedly cautious about placing United in a challenging financial position and potentially violating the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Rules while attempting to fund the construction of a new stadium.
The INEOS billionaire is likely to secure private funding as he’s reluctant to pass on the costs of a new stadium to supporters.
Architects have already been commissioned to begin drafting ideas for the exterior of the stadium. Foster and Partners have been assigned the responsibility of developing a plan to utilise the club-owned land around the new ground, ensuring the area has a vibrant atmosphere and the stadium doesn’t feel “soulless.”
It recently emerged that the Old Trafford task force is set to deliver its final recommendations for the project before the turn of the year.
Fans will also be consulted via a survey email. The expectation is that the survey will cover among other things, fans’ current matchday experience, what they’d like their future experience to be like and their opinions on a new stadium or renovating Old Trafford.
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