Stefan Borson: Man United could be forced to play at Wembley after stunning twist

Manchester United could be forced to temporarily play at Wembley if they can’t remain at Old Trafford while they redevelop the stadium. That is the... The post Stefan Borson: Man United could be forced to play at Wembley after stunning twist appeared first on Football Insider.

Oct 1, 2024 - 23:00

Stefan Borson: Man United could be forced to play at Wembley after stunning twist

Manchester United could be forced to temporarily play at Wembley if they can’t remain at Old Trafford while they redevelop the stadium.

That is the view of former Man City financial adviser Stefan Borson, who exclusively told Football Insider the Premier League giants are unlikely to be permitted to play at any nearby stadiums if they need to move away from the Trafford area.

Man United have set up an expert task force – which includes Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and ex-defender Gary Neville – as they look to either regenerate Old Trafford or build a new facility altogether.

The Telegraph reported on 29 July the task force has initially concluded the best option would be the creation of a new stadium, boasting a capacity of up to 100,000.

If United decide to push forward with the plans, the proposed development is expected to cost up to £2billion – double the £1billion expenditure of redeveloping Old Trafford – and take six years to complete.

Man United could be forced to temporarily leave Old Trafford area

Borson suggested the Manchester club could have to play at Wembley while the project is completed after Tottenham previously had to move to the national stadium during their redevelopment.

He told Football Insider: “There will be a temporary period where there will be a loss of economic benefit to Manchester in the build period because I assume United won’t be able to play at the stadium while they are knocking it down and rebuilding it.

“That is obviously a very big problem.

“For example, imagine if a Manchester club has to play at Wembley for a year.

“That would clearly not be advantageous to the Manchester economy to have that scenario. That seems to me to be possible.

“I think it would be very difficult for City to permit United to play there.

“I don’t think it’s going to happen in Liverpool.

“It’s not going to happen in Leeds, so what are the options really?

“It seems to me that either they can somehow develop the stadium around while playing in that stadium, which nobody has really done.

“Even Spurs had to come out of White Hart Lane for a year. Even though they did have a way of building on that site, they still had to come out of that stadium for a year.