Manchester United unveiled plans to build a new 100,000-seater stadium this month and the club have now confirmed where they will play their games while the ground is being constructed
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Manchester United's new stadium
Manchester United are planning to build a new stadium dubbed the 'Wembley of the North'
Manchester United have confirmed they will continue to play at Old Trafford while their new £2billion stadium is being constructed. United unveiled plans to build a state-of-the-art 100,000-seater stadium earlier this month, with the ground set to be the biggest in the country.
It will be built on the site of the existing Old Trafford as part of a major regeneration project which will see the old ground eventually knocked down. However, architects have now confirmed that the new ground will be built far enough away from Old Trafford that United will be able to keep playing there until they are ready to make the move.
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Patrick Campbell, who works for the Foster + Partners group that United appointed to design the new stadium, told club media : "The idea is to make sure that Manchester United can continue to play in Old Trafford throughout this whole process.
"So we're locating the new stadium broadly in the middle of the Bridgewater Canal and the railway line, just to the west of the existing stadium. This is very much the start of the process.
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"These are some ideas about how we can bring forward the finest football stadium in the world but we've got to do that with the fans, the local community and all the different stakeholders, to make sure they see it as their club, their stadium.
"We're just custodians. We're helping to find form in a stadium and we look forward to continuing some amazing consultations."
United hope the regeneration will deliver an additional £7.3bn per year to the UK economy and create up to 92,000 new jobs and more than 17,000 new homes. It has also been estimated the project will attract an extra 1.8 million visitors each year.
"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," United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe said.
Old Trafford
United plan to continue playing at Old Trafford while their new stadium is being built
"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 Government has identified infrastructure investment as a strategic priority, particularly in the north of England, and we are proud to be supporting that mission with this project of national, as well as local, significance."
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