Manchester City’s 300-million stadium expansion approved

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Manchester City’s plans to increase the Etihad stadium’s capacity by over 5000 seats to an overall capacity of 60 000 have been approved.

This development is motivated by more than just increasing match-day revenue, with a vision of redeveloping the area around the Etihad a key focus. The 300 million-pound project will see the construction of a 400-room hotel, a dedicated fan zone, a club museum, a sky bar offering a view of the pitch, and a stadium roof walk tour.

A project of this magnitude will not see results any time soon, with construction set to take at least three years to complete.

A capacity increase is a necessary investment for City, considering the upward trend of the club over the past 15 years. The team that has won six Premier League titles since 2011 is averaging an attendance of 52 000, a figure lower than rivals Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham and West Ham United. They have the second lowest average attendance of the top six, with Stamford Bridge’s 40 000 capacity being the only one lower.

The financial gain behind the development is a no-brainer. Taking into account all 19 home games in a league season, the increased 60 000 seat capacity will see matchday revenue increase by more than 360 thousand pounds per home fixture. With this increased revenue, City would earn around 3.3 million pounds per home fixture, taking overall home game revenue to over 60 million pounds per season, equating to roughly five years for the investment to be paid off.

Manchester City are not the only club in need of stadium expansion, with the increased global popularity of the Premier League putting extensive pressure on many of the clubs matchday infrastructure. Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United, Leicester City, Brentford, Everton, Newcastle United, Leeds United, and Aston Villa all have an average attendance of between 95% and 98% of their capacity every matchday.

Liverpool and Everton are the only two clubs mentioned above that have addressed the need for a stadium upgrade. Everton are currently in the process of building a brand new 53 000-seat stadium, increasing their capacity by 14 000 seats, with construction set to finish in 2024.

Liverpool are in the third and final year of their Anfield expansion project, which, similarly to City, sees their capacity increase by 7000 seats, from 54 000 to 61 000. The project is nearing completion and is due to finish before the beginning of the 2023/24 season.

There are four Premier League clubs that are in desperate need of a facility upgrade, with their overall capacity holding below 25 000 seats, an incredibly low figure for a first division team, with multiple EFL Championship teams having larger stadium capacities.

Fulham, Crystal Palace, Brentford, and Bournemouth will need to address their limited matchday potential if they wish to cement their status as Premier League clubs.

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Dylan Johnson