Leeds United to halt Elland Road expansion plans – Keith Wyness
Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness has claimed Leeds United will call a halt to plans to expand Elland Road until 2025 at the earliest.
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, the 66-year-old – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – insisted “everything has to be on hold” to ensure promotion from the Championship is the priority.
Football Insider revealed in November 2023 that the Leeds chiefs are planning to expand Elland Road after securing external investment for the project.
The project is expected to increase capacity to around 55,000 and will cost upwards of £100million to complete.
However, Leeds fell short in the Championship play-off final against Southampton on Sunday (26 May), meaning they will spend the 2024-25 campaign in the second tier.
Leeds to stall Elland Road redevelopment after play-off heartbreak, says Wyness
Wyness claimed “small improvements” could materialise for next season, but admitted the renovation will likely be stalled.
He told Football Insider‘s Insider Track podcast: “I think that file may have been on top of the desk, but now it has been put back into the drawer.
“It will be on hold until they see where they are – probably around February 2025.
“I don’t see a major investment in the stadium being made until they get a clearer picture on potential promotion.
“The squad and getting that promotion has got to dominate thoughts. Everything has to be put on hold apart from that.
“If there are small improvements to help the fans, great, but the focus has got to be on going up.”
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