Manchester United are yet to begin work on their 100,000-seater stadium project proposed by Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
The concept images of a 100,000-seater stadium were first revealed back in March after months of planning and discussion among an appointed board.
Manchester United’s new stadium is expected to cost around £2bn and architects Fosters + Partners have set an optimistic deadline of 2030 for the stadium.
However, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been warned about delays and Ineos should take the current situation developing at Barcelona as a warning.
Photo by Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty ImagesIneos must learn from Barcelona stadium ‘chaos’
Lord Norman Foster believes United can halve the construction time of their stadium to five years by using the local canal network for shipping.
However, work on the stadium is yet to begin and time is ticking. At Barcelona, their £1.25bn stadium project has faced serious delays.
As reported by talkSPORT, Barcelona had planned to open the doors to the newly-renovated Camp Nou this Sunday against Valencia, but they now face “stadium chaos” and have no venue for the weekend.
It seems Marcus Rashford and Co. will have to play at the 6,000-capacity Estadi Johan Cruyff with the Camp Nou still not ready to open its doors.
Barcelona will miss out on millions from matchday income for each match they fail to host at their new venue.
Ineos will want to avoid a similar situation developing at United, so the expected timeline for the 100,000-seater project must be carefully considered.
Man United still yet to source stadium funding
If everything goes to plan, Ineos want to begin work on the stadium this year, but we are already in September and there are still major question marks surrounding the project.
The biggest question is how Ineos plan to fund the £2bn project.
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United could pursue a stadium naming rights deal to help fund the project, but Ratcliffe has also been public about the club’s lack of cash.
Ineos have considered a personal seat license in the new stadium, but every option risks upsetting the fanbase.