Leeds United announced on Monday that they plan to boost the stadium’s capacity as part of their upgrade plans. There are many questions regarding this project, and one of them is probably the cost.
With the club now at the helm of Elland Road, they’ve laid out their vision for the stadium’s future. Here’s what they shared on Monday:
- They aim to modernize the stadium and increase its capacity from 37,645 to around 53,000 seats.
- There will be a significant boost in general admission seating. It will position Elland Road as the seventh-largest club stadium in the country.
- A key focus of the architectural design will be to maintain and enhance the unique atmosphere that fans cherish.
- Construction will start out in phases to minimize the loss of seating capacity during the project.
- The goal is to upgrade Elland Road to UEFA Category 4 status, which would place it among the elite European stadiums.
- An expert team has been assembled, blending global stadium experience with local expertise, to create artist’s impressions and prepare the planning submission.
How much will this project cost Leeds’ owners?
Leeds’ new majority owners, 49ers Enterprise, bring valuable experience in stadium projects, successfully opening Levi’s Stadium for their NFL team, the San Francisco 49ers. It’ll be interesting to see how they approach this new venture with the club.
As a result, they’re willing to put the money to ensure it’s a world-class stadium, which is what they’re aiming for with Elland Road. So, how much will this all cost? While not giving an exact figure, The Athletic’s Nancy Froston cited how much Liverpool spent for Anfield’s upgrades as a potential estimate.
“The 49ers are committing £10million to cover the consultation and plan up to the point of planning permission being approved,” Froston wrote. “Though the final cost for the project is unknown, it is likely to be a significant investment by the owners in securing the future of Elland Road as Leeds’ home.
“For comparison, upgrading Liverpool’s Anfield Road stand to add 7,000 seats (taking total capacity to 61,000) cost £80million. There were complications with the project that saw its completion delayed and the firm building the stand entered administration during construction. Meanwhile, their rebuild of the Main Stand completed in 2016 cost £114million.
“Any stadium alteration of the size Leeds are proposing comes at a significant cost, usually in the tens of millions.”
