Sir Jim Ratcliffe wants Manchester United to decide on their stadium construction plan by December and is currently supporting the option of a new stadium with a capacity of 100,000 people, costing over £2 billion and taking about 6 years to complete.
The new stadium would be built next to Old Trafford, allowing Man United to use their current home ground until the new one is completed. The most important factor to consider in the construction is that it must fit the club's image.
The other option is to renovate Old Trafford. However, assessments show that financially, the renovation is estimated to cost around £1 billion to £1.2 billion - about half the cost of new construction - and could also take more than 6 years to complete due to the complexity of renovating a site built in 1910.
Furthermore, renovating Old Trafford would mean significantly reduced revenue as parts of the stadium would be closed, or Man United would have to play at another venue during that time.
Man United will not make a final decision until after fully consulting with fans. However, the club's stadium experts have initially concluded that new construction is the best way to truly change the fan experience and the surrounding community.
The fan and local community consultation will be conducted before making a final recommendation in December.
Sources from Old Trafford believe they have the fan base and regular demand to fill a 100,000-capacity stadium.
Colette Roche, Man United's Chief Operating Officer, has made three visits to Los Angeles and held a series of meetings with those behind the SoFi Stadium development project to leverage their expertise and experience, particularly the campus aspect of the project.
Roche has also followed the Burnham Park project of the NFL team Chicago Bears and their ambitious plans to use a new stadium as a springboard to regenerate a larger area in a public-private partnership similar to what Ratcliffe hopes to achieve with Man United's project.
She also visited the Bernabeu earlier this year to learn about Real Madrid's redevelopment project and spent time with those behind the Tottenham Hotspur and Wembley stadium projects.
SoFi Stadium, owned by Arsenal club owner Stan Kroenke, opened in 2020 and was also the venue for the Man United - Arsenal friendly match last Sunday morning (Vietnam time).
The stadium has a capacity of 70,240, expandable to 100,240, took 4 years to build, cost over $5 billion, and has a roof covering more than 92,000m2, equipped with 27,000 LED screens, providing ideal advertising space as the screens can be seen from vehicles entering the nearby Los Angeles airport.
SoFi is home to the LA Rams and LA Chargers of the NFL and is a major concert venue that has hosted Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, and Ed Sheeran. The stadium is located within the Hollywood Park campus.
