Manchester United plan to retain Old Trafford, even if they construct a new stadium on neighbouring land.
In an unexpected development in the Old Trafford redevelopment project, it has come to light that United will maintain their iconic home in a reduced capacity if they proceed with building a new stadium as anticipated.
The club is considering constructing a new £2billion, 100,000-capacity, state-of-the-art stadium on land they own adjacent to Old Trafford.
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It was previously believed that Old Trafford, United's historic home since 1910, would be demolished to make room for the new stadium, which the club envisions as "the Wembley of the north ".
However, if United do go ahead with the new stadium, the plan is to downsize Old Trafford, which currently accommodates 74,310 fans, to a capacity of approximately 30,000 to 35,000.
The smaller arena would serve as a stadium for United's women's team and various academy teams.
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The rationale behind this move is to preserve as much of Old Trafford's history and heritage as possible, including statues of Sir Matt Busby, Sir Alex Ferguson and United's holy trinity of George Best, Denis Law and Sir Bobby Charlton.
Other features to be retained in a downsized Old Trafford include the Munich clock and the central tunnel on the halfway line, which players used in the past and is the only remaining part of the original 1910 stadium.
Following the Hillsborough disaster, Old Trafford was transformed into an all-seater stadium with a capacity of 44,000.
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The capacity was increased for Euro 96 to host games, thanks to the redevelopment of the North Stand.
Further expansions, including the filling in of the quadrants, have resulted in Old Trafford's growth, leaving only Wembley with a larger capacity.
