Stefan Borson: Man United could save £500m after new stadium latest
Manchester United are continuing to work on the design for their new stadium after an update has emerged.
Man United announced plans to build a 100,000-seater stadium in March this year as part of the government’s regeneration of the Old Trafford area.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has insisted he wants the new stadium, which Man United believe will cost around £2billion, to be the “world’s greatest” and potentially be completed within five years.
As part of the plans drawn up by architect Lord Norman Foster, founder of Foster and Partners, the stadium was set to comprise three masts described as “the trident” that would be 200 metres high and visible from 25 miles away.
However, The Athletic reported on 26 September Man United have now drawn up plans that don’t include the canopy due to issues around purchasing the required land.
Man United made ‘surprising’ new stadium decision
Former Man City financial adviser Stefan Borson exclusively told Football Insider removing the canopy could save Man United up to £500million.
Ratcliffe is considering funding options for the stadium development before getting the project underway.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Borson said: “The whole thing is slightly odd in that I still don’t really know why such a big launch was required for something that is quite preliminary in its planning stage, especially if already without having done anything at all, they’re already talking about getting rid of a big part of the design.
“That’s a bit of a surprise. Manchester United now have got £1bn of net debt. Clearly, if you have got £1bn of debt, layering on top of it another £2bn to build a stadium or more, and £2bn has always felt very conservative if you look at how much Tottenham spent.
“We have to remember the Tottenham Stadium, probably the first spade may have been in the ground 10 years ago now, and even then it’s cost £1.2bn. If you remember when Daniel Levy was interviewed by Gary Neville recently, he was almost incredulous as to whether Manchester United could build a new stadium for £2bn.”
Borson previously told Football Insider Man United could be facing a £4bn bill due to a rise in inflation.
Man United have ‘big’ new stadium funding issue
Man United want to keep the costs of their stadium development in check after drawing up plans without the canopy.
Borson said: “It may be that the canopy was £500m, I don’t know.
“It presumably was a very significant amount of money in the grand scheme of things, but United are going to have a big issue funding that stadium anyway over the next 10 years, and it’s not a surprise that they’re going to have to find corners to cut.”
Man United released their latest accounts for 2024-25 last month, revealing their turnover increased from £661.8m to £666.5m.
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