Manchester United have unveiled plans for a new £2 billion stadium that will be “the Wembley of the North” – and a sign of the club’s ambition to be at the pinnacle of the footballing world, despite its current poor form on the pitch.
The “iconic” 100,000-seater stadium, designed by Norman Foster, will be built on a car park next to the team’s current Old Trafford stadium. It will be to Manchester what the Eiffel Tower is to Paris, the club claims, and will pump £7.3 billion a year into the local economy, creating 92,000 jobs and more than 17,000 new homes.
And yet the massive project is a “risk”, admitted Omar Berrada, United’s chief executive, given the need to rebuild a team currently languishing at 14th place in the Premier League, and a club that’s £1 billion in debt and laying off 450 staff.
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Going ‘bust’ by Christmas
“New Trafford” is the brainchild of Jim Ratcliffe, Manchester United’s minority shareholder, who, only earlier this week, was trying to justify redundancies and other backroom cost savings, such as cutting free staff lunches, by claiming the club was at risk of going “bust” by Christmas
Ratcliffe’s Ineos organisation took control of the club’s sporting operations just over a year ago and “have wasted little time in making their presence felt”, said The Athletic.
There “have been highs” in Ratcliffe’s reign – United won the FA Cup last May – but there have also been “huge challenges”, among them “a sacked manager, mass redundancies, fan protests and a team enduring its worst Premier League season”.
While it is true United that “do have a cash problem”, said The Athletic, Ratcliffe’s statements “stretch credulity in the extreme”.
No evidence was produced to support his claims, said Barney Ronay in The Guardian. “In reality, Manchester United are not going bust if you don’t sack the tea lady.” The 72-year-old petrochemicals billionaire is one of the richest men in Britain, “who keeps saying he’s a fan” and could bail the club out. But now he is saying, “Go bust or do it my way.” This is “basically a threat.”
‘Has to be matched by progress on the field’
What isn’t in dispute is the club’s current £1 billion debt, including £300 million in outstanding transfer fees. So, it is unclear how United will finance its ambitious new stadium plans.
Public money “could be provided to address infrastructure improvements and other developments in or around the area”, said The Telegraph‘s James Ducker. Indeed, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves confirmed today that she will be “championing” the project. But raising the funding for the stadium itself will fall squarely on the club.
Even if United manage to finance and complete the build in five years, as planned, recent Premier League history has shown that a new stadium is far from a guarantee of footballing success. Arsenal, Tottenham and Everton have all made the move to a new ground, and found that the financial constraints severely hamper squad recruitment in subsequent years.
But, among rival clubs, United are in a league of their own, “irrespective of a decade of decay and their current playing malaise”, said Simon Jordan in the Daily Mail. Past success has given them “unsurpassed recognition” worldwide, so, a “new all-singing HQ to reflect their aura” can be seen as a necessity if they’re to stay as one of football’s “market leaders”.
Ratcliffe will know that building a stadium “has to be matched by progress on the field”. For most teams, “such an ambitious project would be a fiercely challenging prospect because of over-reach”. But, for Manchester United, “it’s an opportunity”. In fact, it could be a “vital game-changer for the whole club”.
