Manchester United are forging ahead with their plans to build Europe’s biggest – and, almost certainly, most expensive – football stadium.
After acquiring a plot of land crucial for the massive infrastructure project, United unveiled new plans for a so-called ‘Stadium District’, where the 100,000-seater arena will be at the heart.
Old Trafford, the club’s home for over a century, is quite literally falling apart. And with English football clubs building new stadiums en masse, United cannot afford not to capitalise on the financial advantage that having the country’s biggest fanbase affords them.
However, the stadium will be monumentally expensive. Most early estimates suggest that the plans in their current form will cost Man United north of £2bn.
There may be a degree of government funding for infrastructure around the ground, but United will be on their own when it comes to paying for the stadium itself. For a club which is already indebted to the tune of over £1bn, financing the build will be nearly as complex as the construction itself.
Last week, Man United’s CEO of New Stadium Development, Collette Roche, said that the club could sell the naming rights for the stadium in order to offset future interest payments.
“I don’t know what the stadium will be called but we’ve been really vocal that we are going to potentially look at naming rights to the stadium. It’s an important revenue stream and something we’ve discussed with our fan advisory board.
“Everybody realises affordable, accessible ticket prices are really important. In order to do that, we need to generate revenue streams in other places.”
But how much could Manchester United generate from selling the rights?
Brand expert says Man United naming rights worth £40-50m annually
Naming rights are relatively novel in English football.
To date, the biggest deals are those Manchester City and Arsenal have struck with Etihad and Emirates respectively. But given that both of those arrangements encompass the valuable front-of-shirt category too, it is difficult to ascribe a value to the naming rights of a so-called ‘Big Six’ side.
But speaking to this correspondent last year, Brand Finance valuation director Hugo Hensley said United could be on course for a huge windfall.
“Their benchmarks for stadium naming rights look more like NFL or NBA naming rights where the big ticket is the stadium. I’d expect if they’re setting a number, it’ll look like that £40-50 million [per year], potentially more.”
That would comfortably eclipse Barcelona’s naming rights deal with Spotify for the Nou Camp, which is worth about £17m annually.
It would also be potentially double the £25m that Tottenham Hotspur were seeking for their stadium but have not been able to secure.
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