Back in March, Manchester United unveiled their plans for a new 100,000-seater stadium at Old Trafford after a designated focus group determined that a new build was a more logical step forward than a renovation of their existing home.
The decision to build a new stadium and demolish the current Old Trafford in the process was one that the club had deliberated on for a long time. Ultimately, though, the chance to build a new state-of-the-art stadium from scratch and regenerate the wider area in the process was one that INEOS found too tempting to turn down.
In the months that have followed that announcement, the club have faced a number of stumbling blocks which have slowed down progress. Construction is yet to begin, but earlier this week, Chief Operating Officer (COO) Colette Roache gave fans an exciting update.
A new 100,000-seater stadium will be the centrepiece of the Old Trafford regeneration.#MUFC
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) March 11, 2025
Man Utd chief teases ‘bigger news'
In an interview with Sky Sports, Roache confirmed that there is still a ‘huge ambition' within the club to build the new stadium, but conceded that there is still ‘a lot of work' to do until construction can begin. She added:
“We’re currently in several conversations with local landowners to make sure we can secure the best piece of land that we want to put this stadium on, which will hopefully be there for over 100 years. And in the background, we’re doing a lot of work with the local authorities to make that happen.
“They’re going to launch the Mayoral Development Corporation formally in January, and I think that will be a good sort of milestone, if you like, in terms of the wider regeneration.
“We’re really, really ambitious, a lot of work is happening – albeit behind the scenes – and hopefully soon we’ll be able to come forward with some bigger news.”
FGG says: Baby steps
It's largely been another season of doom and gloom at Manchester United so far, and the concession from Roache that there is still a lot of work to be done until spades are in the ground will disappoint supporters who feel as if INEOS are all talk and no action.
One slice of positivity from the interview is that talks are still ongoing with the local freight company over the piece of land next to Old Trafford. Reports a couple of months ago suggested that the club had given up on those negotiations and were looking at alternative stadium designs instead.