Another twist in the tale
Manchester United will reportedly demolish Old Trafford should new stadium plans be approved despite previous ambitions to keep it as a home for the women’s team and academy.
Sources told the Daily Mail that the club have now abandoned the plans saying it would be ‘too complex and cost hundreds of millions of pounds’.
The club announced plans to build a £2 billion super-stadium next door, dubbed the Wembley of the North earlier in the year which would boast 100,000 seats.
They then announced plans in summer to scale down Old Trafford to a capacity of around 30,000 to preserve the history of the club and provide a home for the women and academy teams.
Old Trafford holds huge sentimental value for fans around the world with its Munich clock and tunnel, paying tribute to the 1958 air disaster.
Outside statues of Sir Matt Busby, Sir Alex Ferguson, Jimmy Murphy and the United Trinity of Sir Bobby Charlton, George Best and Denis Law are all a draw for fans from across the globe.
The news comes ahead of Manchester United women’s WSL curtain raiser against West Ham which is being played at the Theatre of Dreams.
It is no secret that ticket sales have been surprisingly low for this fixture as fans saw their tickets moved last week as the club made the decision to only open one stand.
The club have now decided that 30,000 is too high of a capacity for the women and academy. Last year, the women’s team set a new home record attendance at Old Trafford after 43,615 saw Marc Skinner’s side take on Manchester City in the WSL.
Instead, the club are thinking about knocking down Old Trafford and building a new 15,000 seater stadium on the site in the future.
Yesterday, the club announced plans to email a survey to season-ticket holders and members on Friday to seek their opinions on the plans.
Former United captain Gary Neville who sits on the task force alongside Lord Sebastian Coe has spoken previously about the sentimental argument being overplayed.
He told The Athletic: “None of the stands that were there when I first went in 1979 are there in the same form.
“Most of the stands have been built between 1993 and 2005. We’d not be keeping anything that is 100 years old. What is it that we’d be saving?
“Yes, we must keep the statues, the Munich clock or tunnel. They must be a part of whatever Old Trafford becomes.”
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s vision for a new stadium for the men’s team is not set in stone. The co-owner said in the summer that he wants a decision by the end of the year so work could be complete by 2030.
A £1bn redevelopment of Old Trafford at roughly half the cost is still on the table and finance and the views of fans will be key factors when the club decide.
Ratcliffe is said to be worried about going down the same route as clubs like Everton who were hit with a points deduction trying to finance their new stadium.
Public funding is only likely to be available to regenerate the area around Old Trafford and not to build the new stadium.
As such, if Ratcliffe’s new stadium vision is to be realised, he will more than likely need to secure private funding.
United reported a net loss of £113.2m in their latest accounts released last week, taking the total figure over the last five years to £370m. The club also has a long-standing debt of £496.5m dating back to the Glazer family’s leveraged takeover in 2005.
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