Lord Coe provides update on Manchester United's new stadium plans

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Martin Macdonald | Writer

Content writer covering football, formula 1 and movies

Sebastian Coe says Manchester United's new stadium project is "moving in the right direction" but admitted to uncertainties over the timeline.

Lord Coe, the former head of London’s 2012 Olympic and Paralympic bid, currently chairs the Mayoral Development Corporation tasked with the Old Trafford regeneration project.

The project is being spearheaded by Man Utd shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe, who has aspirations to make a new 100,000 seater stadium that will be viewed as the "Wembley of the North."

What is apparently complicating the plans at the moment is the acquisition of the land needed to build the new stadium and the rising costs that come with that.

Speaking on The Sports Agents podcast, Coe said: "I love regeneration projects and I was really pleased to be asked to get involved in that.

"I do actually believe in good, locally-funded projects to make lives easier for local people. And I also saw from the London model that if you build it around sport, the multiplier impact of getting other stuff done is far quicker than it would have been.

"Land acquisition is always complicated. I know that from London, so, at this moment, it's just putting the stuff together sequentially and incrementally and using a world-class stadium to be a catalyst for so many other things, including inward investment.

"So, it's about jobs, it's about housing, it's about educational aspiration and I've seen sport so often used properly, changing local landscapes and this is an exciting project."

As for when the 'New' Old Trafford will open, Coe said that they are some way away from giving a definitive timeline.

"Well, again, it's slightly uncertain at the moment. The stadium is being scoped and being improperly scaled.

"But again, that is also dependent on the purchasing and the acquisition of various other parcels of land in that space.

"That's all taking place at the moment and I won't maintain a running commentary on that, but we're moving in the right direction."

🏟️ JUST IN: Manchester United have drawn out plans for a new Old Trafford WITHOUT the canopy presented in images earlier this year.

United are looking at alternatives to the bold design due to issues over purchasing the required land needed from Freightliner, who are demanding… pic.twitter.com/OBwzHkgSQX

— Stretford Paddock (@StretfordPaddck) September 26, 2025

Stadium design scrapped

In March of 2025, the Red Devils revealed the design for the 'new' Old Trafford and it was divisive to say the least, with the most eye-catching aspect of the graphic being three sky-scraping canopies.

At the time, INEOS chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe said of the plans:

"Today marks the start of an incredibly exciting journey to the delivery of what will be the world’s greatest football stadium, at the centre of a regenerated Old Trafford.

"Our current stadium has served us brilliantly for the past 115 years, but it has fallen behind the best arenas in world sport. By building next to the existing site, we will be able to preserve the essence of Old Trafford, while creating a truly state-of-the-art stadium that transforms the fan experience only footsteps from our historic home. Just as important is the opportunity for a new stadium to be the catalyst for social and economic renewal of the Old Trafford area, creating jobs and investment not just during the construction phase but on a lasting basis when the stadium district is complete."

The canopies have since been scrapped after the poor reception to the design, but plans are still moving ahead, slowly, for the development of the new stadium.

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