An Elland Road expansion has been on the agenda for several years now, but rumours have increased since 49ers Enterprises first bought a minority stake in Leeds United in 2018.
In the summer of 2023, the group bought out then-majority shareholder Andrea Radrizzani, and the group has big plans for the club, including the stadium.
Here is what we know so far about the possible Elland Road expansion.
Does Elland Road need an expansion?
Contents
At the moment Elland Road has a capacity of 37,890, making it the third-biggest stadium in the Championship. However, Leeds do have a very large and passionate fanbase thanks in large to a) the fact they are the only professional football club in Leeds and b) their long and illustrious history.
At present, there are 27,000 season ticket holders at Elland Road but there is a waiting list that is in excess of over 20,000. This indicates that the club would easily be able to sell out an expanded Elland Road, particularly if they manage to establish themselves as a Premier League club again.
How big will the Elland Road expansion be?
Leeds United released a statement in September 2024 confirming that Elland Road will be expanded and that the new capacity will be 53,000.
The aim of the expansion is to modernise Elland Road while preserving the intense atmosphere that the stadium has always been famed for. The expansion work will focus on the North and West Stands will be executed in phases to ensure minimum disruption.
The statement read:
“The existing stadium has a capacity of 37,645 seats, with regeneration set to increase that to circa 53,000, with greatly improved general admission and hospitality facilities.
“The club, along with owners 49ers Enterprises, have brought in specialist acoustic consultants to ensure Elland Road’s unique atmosphere is retained. A local transport consultant has been commissioned to help plan access routes and manage traffic flows during construction.
“Critically, the club and the professional team will also be looking closely at matchday travel plans to ensure an improvement in the experience for both residents and supporters arriving at the ground.”
When will Elland Road be expanded?
The consensus has always been that Leeds must be back in the Premier League before Elland Road can be expanded. However, after losing the playoff final in the summer, the club's chairman, Parraag Marathe, suggested this isn't the case. He said:
“It’s been reported that nothing’s going to happen until we get to the Premier League — that’s a little bit of a myth. We still have all of the make-ready work we have to do before shovels are in the ground, it really doesn't matter if we are in the Championship or the Premier League.
“If you ask me a year from now, it might be a little bit more complicated because at that point, I’d be ready with a shovel.”
Now that the expansion plans have been officially announced, it is unlikely that the club will wait until they are back in the Premier League. However, if they do go up this year, then extra finances from promotion would certainly be helpful.
What would an expanded Elland Road look like?
If the San Francisco 49ers' home stadium, Levi's Stadium, is anything to go by then Elland Road could become a futuristic phenomenon. However, Marathe is keen to ensure that ‘magic and electricity' of Elland Road isn't lost. He recently told reporters:
“I’ll be honest with you, the main thing is to protect the magic and electricity that is in Elland Road. Players of other clubs, if they are going to list the three worst places that they want to play on the road for an away match, Elland Road is probably one, two, or three for them. I don’t want to take that away.”