Inside Man United's super stadium master plan (2024)

Who can blame Manchester United for wanting to build a new stadium? Old Trafford has fallen into disrepair.

The roof leaks and the famous old ground has become a relic unbefitting of the world’s biggest football club.

United could still opt to redevelop Old Trafford, of course, but should they take the plunge on a new ground it will be the biggest, most expensive project of its kind Britain has seen.

Estimates range from £2billion upwards, with plans not only for a new state-of-the-art stadium but also vast swathes of land around it.

Here, Mail Sport examines what it takes to carry out such a gargantuan task — and why the Red Devils are taking inspiration from the City of Angels.

Design and feel

How do you want your stadium to look and feel? That is the first major question that needs to be answered.

In Los Angeles, they wanted a ‘Southern California feel’ for SoFi Stadium, which opened in 2020 and is widely viewed as one of the best venues on the planet. To them, that meant bringing the inside, outside. Cover, but not domes. Designers wanted those present to feel the cool breeze of the Pacific from their seats.

When it comes to Manchester, a roof that does not leak would be a start. But designers will be given the major task of representing United in stadium format. That means a big, impressive stadium for a big, impressive club. A cash-generating tourist attraction but also a cauldron of noise.

In a perfect world, a capacity of 100,000, as mentioned by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, would make United’s new stadium the second-biggest in Europe, after Barcelona’s redeveloped Nou Camp.

In the spring of 2022, the Glazer family commissioned consultants to examine options for a redevelopment. Populous, the designers of Tottenham’s bar- setting home, were tasked with coming up with a masterplan. They teamed up with US project manager Legends, which also worked on the redevelopment of Liverpool’s Anfield Road stand.

It is understood that a key part of their work was a major examination of United’s fanbase. Data was crunched not just on numbers, season-ticket holders and waiting lists but also on demographics and disposable income. The aim of that exercise, which now happens with most sporting new builds, was to ensure the venue catered for all needs and maximised revenues.

Spurs are thought to have nailed it in this area by identifying no fewer than nine levels of varying corporate offerings. Gone are the days when fans had a binary choice between a full service, four-course meal in a box, and a regular seat. Those who visit can now choose from varying levels of add-ons and experiences.

But although Spurs benefit from being based in London, they don’t have United’s fanbase. Already on a regular matchday, United host thousands of overseas supporters in corporate areas and there is the potential for huge growth in the number of fans visiting from China and India.

Attendances are also examined as part of the data crunching, with analytical tools allowing those involved to look into a crystal ball and identify future trends. Business consultants are often brought in to crunch the numbers and United will be no different.

Ticket prices will make up a key element of the formula behind how the new stadium looks. What will the demand be? How will that demand change in the next decade and beyond? ‘Trend forecasting’, the art of looking into the future, runs through everything. Getting the balance right is essential.

In United’s case, it has been accepted that the last thing they need to do is squeeze out what is known in the industry as the ‘general admission’ fan. One of the most attractive elements of Old Trafford is its size, and the fact visitors are guaranteed to experience being part of a 74,000-seat, sold-out stadium.

To that end, expect to see a huge, one-tiered Stretford End as part of a completely new Old Trafford or a rebuilt one.

The trend in the 1990s and 2000s was to insert corporate boxes in a ring around the middle of a stadium, as was the case with Club Wembley, but it is now widely recognised that doing so dilutes the atmosphere. Spurs have imitated Borussia Dortmund’s 24,454 Yellow Wall with their own 17,500 south stand. Expect United’s red equivalent to be even bigger.

Corporate offerings are more than likely to be down both sides of the ground, rather than behind the goals.

It remains to be seen if Populous is tasked with creating the final design. Intriguingly, Sir Norman Foster, one of the most famous British architects in modern times, is close to Ratcliffe. Foster + Partners, the 89-year-old Mancunian’s company, was brought in to draw up plans for this summer’s £50million revamp of the Carrington training facility.

Ratcliffe may well turn to his old pal, though his company do not come cheap — they have a reputation as one of the more pricier options on the market.

Funding

How do you pay for all this? Well, the options are many.

In the US, the taxpayer has traditionally taken their share of the burden. The second-most expensive project of its kind in the country, the £1.4bn Allegiant Stadium — home of the Las Vegas Raiders — cost Las Vegas and Clark County £590m.

The state of Nevada pumped in an extra £157m on infrastructure, mainly to upgrade the freeways around the site off the bottom of the famous Strip. It will take a long time for the authorities to recoup an outlay that prompted severe criticism, although the building of the stadium effectively landed the city an NFL franchise with the Raiders moving down from Oakland.

Back in 2009 the Dallas Cowboys moved to AT&T Stadium in Arlington for a then scarcely believable cost of £1bn. Bonds and tax hikes by the city played a key role in allowing owner Jerry Jones to finance the build.

In Atlanta, around £470m of public funding went into the domed Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and although New York’s MetLife Stadium — home to the Jets and the Giants — was paid for privately, it was built on land owned by the state of New Jersey.

SoFi, the most expensive stadium on the planet at £4.3bn, bucked this trend. As the Washington Post noted, the site is three-and-a-half times the size of Disneyland and twice as big as the Vatican City. It features a 70,240-seat stadium, a smaller 6,000-seat venue and a vast complex of residential units and commercial office spaces.

United have visited the venue to seek inspiration and it is easy to see why.

The project was privately funded by Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke, who injected £1.25bn of personal equity. A loan from the league of around £315m helped — though you suspect United can forget about securing one of those — as did the sale of seat licences, a debenture which allows the holder to buy a season ticket in that seat. Those range from £800 to £12,000 and will be refunded after 50 years.

The debt level of the franchises was also raised to help with costs, and naming rights also played their part. Not only is the stadium sponsored but so are facilities within it, such as a 70,000-square-foot video board carrying the name of tech giants Samsung.

That is not to say there is zero public funding. James T Butts, the mayor of Inglewood, has pledged £1.1bn to infrastructure and a rail link with the capacity to move 12,000 people an hour.

United are seeking public funding from the outset, which is why Sebastian Coe is part of the Ineos taskforce looking into the new stadium project. He chaired the organising committee for the 2012 Olympics in London and will be tasked with unlocking Government purse strings.

As was the case in Vegas, though, public money — should it be forthcoming — would be likely focused on infrastructure costs and the potential of a transport hub for Manchester which makes use of the freight terminal at the back of the Stretford End.

There is likely to be borrowing offset against future revenues. SoFi works not only because it hosts two franchises and double the games, but because it has staged a Super Bowl, major college matches and Wrestlemania — and will be the venue for the 2028 Olympics opening and closing ceremonies, after staging matches at the 2026 World Cup.

Projects of this size are not viable without wider regeneration, and that is where United’s plan for the area comes in. Hotels, houses, office blocks, shops and restaurants not only help pay off debt, they turn the site into a 24-7 revenue generator and make it more attractive for local authorities. The ‘Wembley of the North’ element would also open it to other events and increase usage. This would be more than just a football stadium.

Planning permission

Once the designs are ready and the money is in place, the next step is planning permission. Usually, this is a formality. Given the vast sums already spent, it is highly unlikely clubs would get to this stage only for the council to knock them back.

A relationship with the local authority is important. That is why it is no surprise that on United’s taskforce sits Sara Todd. Todd may be a Manchester City season-ticket holder, but she is also the chief executive of Trafford Council.

Often, new stadiums form part of a wider regeneration. The promise of new housing, retail and transport infrastructure are attractive to local government, especially at a time when investment is in short supply.

Construction

You may think that once the money is in the bag, the biggest hurdle has been cleared, but finding someone to build what you have designed is not as straightforward as it seems.

Projects of this size start with requests for proposal (RFP), the first stage in what is effectively an auction. That is followed by requests for quotation, after which a decision will be made.

In reality there are relatively few contractors that could take on a project of this size. BAM Construction have been mentioned, and they could be looking for an image boost after their experience across Manchester with the much-delayed Co-Op Live concert venue. Laing O’Rourke are another.

One firm it will not be is the Buckingham Group, who went under last year. Buckingham were behind the new stadiums at Brighton and Brentford and the redevelopment of the Oval. They were in the midst of redeveloping Liverpool’s Anfield Road stand when they stopped trading.

There are pitfalls, hence why a schedule of works, like any project on a house, is important. A significant amount would be due up front for materials and the architect often takes a percentage of projected build costs.

United are hoping their project will take six years, which is ambitious but feasible. At Spurs, eight years passed from confirmation to opening, and they had to deal with a pandemic.

Ratcliffe has the advantage of overseeing bigger projects with Ineos, not least the vast petrochemical plant in Antwerp in progress for a cost of £2.6bn.

There are plenty of hurdles to clear, but six years may be enough for United to catch up with their rivals and build a home that matches their superstar status.