Man United 'make' Old Trafford 'U-turn' amid Sir Jim Ratcliffe's £2bn 'Wembley of the North' plan

Sir Jim Ratcliffe outside Old Trafford
-Credit: (Image: PA)


Manchester United have reportedly realised they must now demolish Old Trafford rather than retain the stadium alongside any 'Wembley of the North' they build.

The Manchester Evening News reported a month ago that the plan was to have it replace Leigh Sports Village as the home for the club's academy and women's teams. That would come after making it a 'mini Old Trafford' by reducing the capacity to around 30,000, intending to preserve the site's history instead of knocking it down.

Bulldozing the 114-year-old stadium down would be something thousands of matchgoers would be opposed to. Season ticket holders and members are invited to share their input on their regeneration plans, with supporters able to have their say starting Friday.

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But days before that fan survey is shared, the Daily Mail claims that the club have realised that keeping Old Trafford would be too complicated, costing well over £100million to complete and not likely to work. It has also seemingly been concluded that a 15,000-seater stadium would be more suited and could come on the same site after building their new home for the men's team.

Historical elements from Old Trafford will reputedly be conserved, with the club said to be creating a heritage focus group to ensure that happens. Club sources have previously cited the Munich clock, the Sir Matt Busby statue, the Munich tunnel and the original tunnel on the halfway line, as the Manchester Evening News has reported.

Global architecture studio Foster + Partners will reportedly be masterplanning the wider redevelopment, making them responsible for incorporating those remnants into their plans. However, it is also acknowledged that no decision is final yet, with redeveloping Old Trafford at £1billion not off the table at this stage despite the focus being on the £2billion rebuild Sir Jim Ratcliffe seemingly prefers.