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Oxford is one of the UK’s greatest, most storied cities, offering world-class theatre (at the Playhouse), art (the Ashmolean) and a whole host of gorgeous pubs dating back to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Now it’s set to take a step towards becoming a major footballing city, too, with plans approved for a shiny new stadium for Oxford United.
Oxford United has been based at the 12,500-capacity Kassam Stadium in the city’s Littlemore area since 2001. The stadium has only three stands, with fans complaining that the unusual arrangement creates a ‘wind tunnel effect’. It was reported in 2022 that the club was seeking a new home as its lease on the current site is due to expire in 2028.
At that time, the club's managing director Niall McWilliams told councillors at a cabinet meeting that there was ‘no possibility’ of buying the Kassam or extending their current lease. He warned that failure to build a new stadium could jeopardise ‘the very existence of the club’.
Fans of The U’s will rejoice, then, that a new stadium for the club has officially received planning permission. Oxford United’s new venue, which will cost between £130-150 million and accommodate 16,000 fans, will be built near Oxford Parkway Station in the area known as ‘The Triangle’.
After some debate as to the site’s ideal location, with environmental concerns taking priority, Oxfordshire Country Council approved the leasing of the land in principle in September 2023. Cherwell District Council and the government then granted planning permission for the project last year, with a legally binding Section 106 agreement – which stipulates the financial contributions that developers will make towards local infrastructure – now published.
Thanks to the section 106 agreement, the Championship football team is committed to putting at least £5.1m towards projects such as improvements at Oxford Parkway Station. The club will also contribute approximately £930,000 towards the reopening of the Cowley Branch Line, resulting in the opening of two new railway stations.
The stadium will also include a 180-bed hotel, as well as a conference centre, restaurant and community plaza. More detailed construction plans now need to be submitted before work on the stadium can finally go ahead.
Club chairman Grant Ferguson said: ‘While important steps remain, this milestone gives us the platform to move forward with confidence as we focus on the next stages of this once-in-a-generation opportunity.’
He added: ‘The new stadium is designed not only as a home for men's and women's football, but as a major community and business hub.’
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