Back in April, plans to give Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium a mega revamp were submitted to the local council. Now those plans have officially been given a final sign-off.
At an estimated cost of £300m, the upgrade will see the stadium become a bigger and better year-round entertainment and leisure destination. Included in the plans are several all-weather facilities, the expansion of the North Stand (which will increase capacity from 53,400 to just under 62,000) and, excitingly, a swanky sky bar and a roof walk attraction.
On top of that there are plans for a covered City Square fan zone which will have capacity of up to 3,000 and feature a big cluster of food and drink outlets, as well as a club shop, museum and 400-bed hotel. Also on the cards is a small workspace for use by start-up and medium-sized companies that might collaborate with the club, City Football Group or Etihad Campus partners.
Developers are shooting for the project to start this month, meaning that the new North Stand will be ready in time for the 2025/26 footie season. The nine-story hotel is expected to be finished by August 2025.
Bosses estimate that the project will bring a substantial £70m into the Greater Manchester economy each year and lead to 3,000 new full-time and part-time jobs.
When plans were first approved, Danny Wilson, City’s managing director of city operations said: ‘This development will not only enable the club to enhance and expand its offering to fans and visitors on both matchday and non-matchday, but it will also create lasting long-term economic and social benefits for our local community, building on the regeneration work City Football Group has delivered in East Manchester since 2008.’
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