Manchester United's future 100,000 seat stadium could host 2035 Women's World Cup final, but there are serious doubts

Manchester United expected the "New Old Trafford" to be completed in five or six years, but experts are not so sure.
Text: Javier Escribano
Published 2025-07-10

Manchester United announced in March this year their plans to build a new stadium, a "New Old Trafford", designed to be the largest in the United Kingdom and one of the largest in the world, with over 100,000 seats, as well as having a walkable district around, a "miniature city of the future" all contained under a large umbrella. Plans are for the stadium to be ready by 2030.

Now, with the four nations in the United Kingdom expected to host the 2035 Women's World Cup, being the sole bidder, Manchester United wants that their new stadium, expected to be long completed by then, to be the venue for the final, according to sources for BBC Sport.

However, there are serious doubts, as per industry and football experts, that the stadium can be completed in five or six years, most of them regarding United's ability to fund the £2bn project refinancing their significant debt before that. Insiders believe that the only option would to be have a subsidiary company owning the stadium. Even the sporting matters come into play, as the current out of form state of the first men's team, which will not play in Europe next year, means tickets sales will likely go down.

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