Jim Ratcliffe is urging Manchester United to confirm their stadium plans by the year’s end. He is leaning towards building a new venue, which could hold 100,000 spectators and cost upwards of £2bn, requiring roughly six years to complete. This proposed stadium would be built adjacent to Old Trafford, enabling the club to utilise the current grounds until the newly constructed one is operational. Ensuring the new venue aligns with the distinct club identity is one of Ratcliffe’s main concerns regarding its design.
The alternative would be refurbishing Old Trafford. However, this option would mean potential decreases in revenue due to the need for closing parts of the ground during the renovation or finding another venue for United to play while the rebuilding is underway.
Colette Roche, the chief operating officer of United and the one helming the project for Ratcliffe, a minority shareholder in charge of football operations, has toured some of the world’s most renowned stadiums and held talks with their owners or key individuals involved in the construction of these venues. This includes consulting with executives from Real Madrid regarding the revamping of Santiago Bernabéu, a project initiated in 2019. She has also thoroughly evaluated the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Los Angeles County.
SoFi Stadium, property of Stan Kroenke, the owner of Arsenal, was inaugurated in 2020. It played host to United’s friendly match against Arsenal the previous Saturday. Besides being the home ground for NFL’s LA Rams and LA Chargers, it also serves as a primary concert venue. Sporting a 70,240-seat capacity that can increase to 100,240, it took four years to build, had an expenditure over $5bn and includes a one million square foot canopy embedded with 27,000 LED screens. Located within the 298-acre Hollywood Park campus site, which also comprises a retail park and residential apartments, it offers prime advertising space visible to air traffic landing at the nearby Los Angeles airport.
Prior to embarking on their American tour, United gathered for several discussions with those involved in the SoFi project. They were particularly interested in the campus aspect of the project, aiming to gain insights on how to maximally utilise the Old Trafford premises. The mayor of Inglewood, James T Butts, who spearheaded the development of Hollywood Park, expressed, somewhat biasedly perhaps, that in his view, this is the most superior sports venue globally, pointing out the roof as the greatest advertising prospect worldwide. – Guardian.