Sir Jim Ratcliffe reportedly wants to turn Old Trafford into “Wembley of the North”, with ambitious plans being drawn up at Manchester United.
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Britain's richest man has acquired stake in Red DevilsFunds being made available for redevelopmentNew build still an option being consideredWHAT HAPPENED?
Ineos owner Ratcliffe, who is Britain’s richest man, has acquired a 25 per cent stake in the Red Devils. That £1 billion ($1.3bn) deal is expected to be signed off by the Premier League shortly. Once given a green light, then £237m ($298m) of funding for redevelopment of Old Trafford can be made available.
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United have much bigger plans, though, for their famous old ground. The intention is to create a world-class venue that rivals the 90,000-capacity home of English football in north London. Sources close to Ratcliffe have told : “He feels the club needs an absolute state-of-the-art, knock-it-out-of-the-park, ‘wow’ ‘stadium. And we feel there’s a strong argument for the country having a top-class major venue in the North – a Wembley of the North.”
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Ratcliffe is said to be “broadly opposed” to the idea of United having to relocate, although he believes support among fans could be secured if that becomes the only logical option. Land immediately surrounding Old Trafford – which United have called home for 114 years – could be acquired and developed. Sources added: “The spiritual home is important. We think the fans would be quite happy to accept a brand new stadium if we stay where we are.”
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United may have to consider the construction of a brand new venue as Chris Lee – the managing director of Populous, the architectural design firm tasked with overseeing the project – has already told that a rebuild “may well turn out to be the most cost effective solution”. He added: “The building is reaching the end of its natural life; the cabling, the electricity supplies, everything is nearing its sell by date.”
