Manchester United are considering three options with regards to revamping Old Trafford, including knocking the stadium down and building a new one.
A plan to demolish the iconic Old Trafford Stadium and rebuild it from scratch has been reportedly proposed as Manchester United consider revamping the 112-year-old stadium to make it fit for modern purposes. Considered one of England football's most iconic stadiums, reports have suggested that the Red Devils have been warned it will cost them up to 1.5 billion pounds if they choose to bulldoze Old Trafford and raise it from the ground up.
According to a report in the Daily Mail, officials at United have been advised that drastic plans to build a state-of-the-art stadium on land adjacent to the Threatre of Dreams would make it the most expensive ever built in the country. The report, quoting external consultants, adds that the cost of a new 80,000-capacity stadium is expected to exceed Tottenham's 1.1 billion pound home.
Prices of steel and other essential materials have risen sharply since the Lily Whites built their new home, and the Ukraine war could skyrocket the prices, further increasing the cost to rebuild Old Trafford significantly. It is understood the club may cover building costs through loans and the issue of bonds.
Apart from demolishing the Old Trafford, other options reportedly include a 400 million pound expansion of Sir Bobby Charlton Stand up and over the railway line that runs behind it. This option would take the stadium's capacity beyond 80,000 spectators.
The final option is to leave the stadium structurally intact but conduct a comprehensive revamp of spectator and corporate areas on all four sides of the ground.
In 2019, United invested almost 20 million pounds in Old Trafford, of which 11 million pounds was spent on improvements to accessible facilities, 4 million pounds on security and 4 million pounds on refurbishing hospitality locales.
But despite several attempts at modernisation over the years, it now falls some way below the standards required by a top English club. Facilities at places like Tottenham and Arsenal have been regarded as far superior.
Bulldozing one of England football's most famous club stadiums - the home of the Busby Babes and Sir Alex Ferguson's 1999 treble winners - and raising it from the ground up would perhaps upset a sizeable proportion of fans.
Former Manchester United right-back Gary Neville believes United would be better building a brand new state of the art stadium instead of undertaking work on Old Trafford.
Speaking on his Instagram page earlier this week, Neville said, "I think by the time they have spent money on Old Trafford, the existing one, then I think you would be better off building a brand new, better, super stadium."
"I think that Manchester United should always be at the forefront of stadiums, have the best facilities, and have fallen behind," he concluded.
Following this recent development, several Manchester United fans took to Twitter to voice their opinion, with most suggesting that the club rather focuses on rebuilding the squad than the stadium.
