New Stadium Development executive gives stadium update
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 24: A general exterior view of Old Trafford, home stadium of Manchester United showing the main west car park which has plans for a new stadium to be built on ahead of the Premier League match between Manchester United and Fulham FC at Old Trafford on February 24, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images) | Getty Images Manchester United’s plans for a new stadium were unveiled early on in the INEOS era, but after nearly two years with co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe in charge of the footballing side of the club, there hasn’t been much update on the plans until recently. Collette Roche, the recently appointed chief executive of New Stadium Development, sat down with a club-produced podcast recently to provide an update on the plans.
“We did say it would take between four and five years for construction,” she said. “People read that as we might have the stadium ready for 2030. But it does take one or two years to get ready for construction; to get the land assembled, to get the funds in place and to get the planning permission.
“That’s the part that we’re doing right now. We’ve not named a date for opening, but we are on track within those timescales. ” A previously set target of the 2035 Women’s World Cup was set by Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, and Roche remarked: “if we could pull that off, that would be incredible.
” The stadium won’t be built in any real sense for the time being, as investment is still not secured for the massive project. The club has yet to acquire the rest of the land surrounding the current Old Trafford location that would be required with the current stadium plan. There was some talk of public funding for the stadium, but Roche indicated that there has been a lot of interest in outside investment in the new stadium and the surrounding district.