Ahead of the 2025/26 season, Manchester United unveiled an entirely redeveloped Carrington training complex.
The development work included an entirely new training complex and facilities for both the men's and women's teams, while work on new academy facilities is reportedly next on their to do list.
After the work had been completed, Ratcliffe declared the new Carrington a world-class facility, and the players have reportedly been spending an increased amount of time at the complex due to the impressive facilities.
Age-group teams to relocate to former women’s team facility
Since the completion of Man United's new expensive training centre, the under-21s and U18s teams have been left to drift without a permanent base.
However, recent news revealed that the club is planning to relocate them to the two-storey complex originally built for the women’s team last season.
The women's team occupied the building after vacating their original base for the men's senior team during the Carrington training ground renovation.
There are also reports that the club are now looking to build a bespoke academy structure in the near future, with Man United recently announcing that the academy building at Carrington will be in line with the leading standards that they have for the main squads.
Stephen Torpey, Man Utd's new academy boss, and Jason Wilcox, Man Utd's director of football, will be tasked with establishing what the new academy training ground should look like and will also formulate the required budget for the redevelopment.
Carrington Training Ground criticism
The investment also came after major criticism of the women's training facilities at Carrington. When former manager Casey Stoney left the club in 2021, it was suggested that the poor facilities for her players were one of the reasons for her departure.
That would have been fair. United Women – who were re-founded in 2018, promoted to the Women's Super League in 2019 and finished second in 2023 – were having to train in temporary buildings and a marquee.
Women's team have new £7m building at Manchester United training ground
Thankfully, that setup is no more. The £7m training facility looks fantastic. It includes a gym, rehabilitation areas, changing rooms, kit and boot rooms, a restaurant, analysis and meeting rooms and a players' lounge. The experience for United's female players has immediately improved.
Construction on the Carrington redevelopment began in February 2023, and United Women moved into the building at the start of the 2023/24 season, with only a few minor things left to complete.
“A high-performance environment”
Polly Bancroft, who joined United as Head of Women's Football in 2022, said of the development: “We now have a high-performance environment to operate in which will help take the team to the next level following the impressive performances we have seen on the pitch.”
“It is also important,” she continued, “for the girls academy sides to see the players they admire having access to high-quality facilities to help them reach the highest level.”
Could Man Utd leave Carrington?
While the development of the women's facilities at Carrington was a long time coming, there was a point when it looked like it could all have been for nothing. Shortly after INEOS purchased its stake in the club, it began scouting out new land in Greater Manchester to build a new state-of-the-art training facility.
Those plans were eventually shelved as the club elected to redevelop Carrington instead. Work has since been completed and the facility has been modernised, with the club determined to keep up with their rivals in a ‘high-performance collaborative environment'.
The total cost of the project was around £50m. All areas, from the gym and recovery areas to medical facilities, have been revamped, meaning the club will not be moving out of Carrington anytime soon.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe criticised for ignoring the women's team
Following the recent redevelopment of the Carrington training complex, particularly with the Manchester United Women's team not being prioritised in the plans, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has faced sharp criticism.
Former Manchester United Women's midfielder Katie Zelem expressed strong discontent with Ratcliffe's position on the women's team's situation. Reflecting on her six years at Carrington, Zelem noted that she felt the club did not take the Manchester United Women's team seriously. She mentioned issues such as being moved out of facilities and struggling to find adequate playing grounds.
In a subsequent interview, Manchester United co-owner Ratcliffe made a concerning statement, particularly regarding the women's team. The British billionaire mentioned that the club had not looked into modernising facilities for the women's team, as the current focus is on the men's team.
Before Ratcliffe's partial takeover of Manchester United, Manchester United Women had a difficult 2023/24 season, finishing fifth in the Women's Super League, marking their worst-ever finish in the division.
However, the club have since redeveloped Carrington, including constructing a new home for the Women's team.
Carrington redevelopment controversy
Due to the work at Carrington, the men's first team was using the women's new training facilities during the 2023/24 season.
As a result, the women's team was forced to use portable cabins for meetings and dressing rooms when scheduling conflicts with the men's team.
For a couple of weeks this summer, they were also forced to train at St Georges Park, which is more than 60 miles away from Carrington. As a result, INEOS have come under fire for their treatment of the women's team.
Is the new Carrington building ready?
The £50 million Carrington redevelopment was completed in early August, on time and within budget. The grand opening took place just over a week before the new 2025/26 Premier League season began.
The revamped facility includes a swimming pool, cryo recovery chambers, enhanced canteen, barbershop, open-plan offices, player recreation zone, flow design for sequential training, and height-adjustable underwater treadmill pools.
Co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe hailed the new Carrington “world-class,” a facility befitting Manchester United’s global status. CEO Omar Berrada highlighted how the infrastructure unifies staff and players around a shared vision.
Pictures of Carrington redevelopment
Manchester United released several pictures of the new women's first-team training facility on Wednesday, October 18, 2023. A couple are displayed below.
Pictures via Manchester United FC official gallery, available to view on ManUtd.com and the United app.