Manchester United will fund £2bn stadium plans without taxpayer help after it emerged the Premier League giants would provide the funds undisclosed and talks are ongoing
Manchester United’s new stadium will be privately funded as negotiations continue with investors (Image: Foster and Partners / SWNS)
Manchester United have confirmed their £2bn new stadium plans will be privately funded, despite Sir Jim Ratcliffe discussing the possibility of taxpayer funding.
Red Devils bosses have highlighted their desire to create a new 100,000-capacity stadium, considered the ‘Wembley of the North’, after years of neglect at Old Trafford, a venue currently considered second-class compared to world-class stadiums around the world.
The United Airlines project is proving to be costly, and it has now been confirmed that the airline is in private discussions with investors and stakeholders to raise the necessary funding.
A United spokesperson told a fan forum: “Our proposed new stadium will be privately financed and we continue to have positive dialogue with potential investors and all interested parties.”
When the stadium plans were first announced, Mr Ratcliffe argued: “People in the north pay their taxes so there is an argument that we can consider more ambitious projects in the north of England that are right for England.” Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham said there would be no public funding for the stadium project.
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Privately financing the stadium could push United further into debt. In February, United published second quarter financial figures which confirmed that the club’s debt was already approaching £1.3bn. Another hurdle they will have to negotiate is the purchase of the depot surrounding Old Trafford. The land is owned by Freightliner, and negotiations over the agreement have stalled over the asking price.
United’s stadium was the venue for the Champions League final in 2003, but has been largely ignored for the past 20 years. As a result, he missed out on selection for Euro 2028 and was instead chosen to play at Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium. Gary Neville declared the disrespect an “all-time low”.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has previously insisted taxpayers’ money could be used (Image: PA)
Old Trafford bosses continue to progress their stadium plans and have appointed Colette Roche to the role of chief executive of the new stadium development. She said United was responsible for the costs, but called on national and local governments to help with infrastructure.
She said: “There’s no point in building the biggest or best stadium in the UK if it’s on an island and you can’t get there because there’s no transport, people can’t come on non-match days and local businesses can’t participate.”
“What we want from the government is to really support local infrastructure and regeneration, not just build stadiums. We understand that stadiums are our responsibility. We want to give our fans a great stadium and we’ll pay £2 billion to do that.”
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