Old Trafford - Tired, Worn - Jamie Jackson piece

UnitedFan93

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It would be a massive mistake and a real shame to leave Old Trafford to move to new stadium.

As more and more clubs are leaving their spiritual homes to move to soulless glass bowls, Old Trafford should be seen as an amazing opportunity for the club to differentiate themselves against their competitors.

Commercially, Old Trafford adds so much more to the brand value of Manchester United than any new stadium could. To play in a stadium that is over 100 years old is unique and commercially very appealing. Old Trafford has survived two world wars; provided the stage for the Busby Babes and rebirth of the club after Munich; seen Best, Law and Charlton showcase their skills; watched the rise of the Class of 92 and total dominance of English football under the greatest manager of all time, and witnessed so many legendary players and unique moments. You can build a state-of-the-art stadium (that will eventually be surpassed) but you can never build another Old Trafford and all the memories that it holds. No new stadium can provide such pride for its fans. When I go to Old Trafford I can sense the ghosts of history - it's an incredible experience. In many ways, the story of Manchester United is told through Old Trafford. That is special and it should inspire the players.

That being said, Old Trafford definitely needs investment as it's looking tired and dated. The club needs to employ an architect to design an overall masterplan for OT and the surrounding land. A plan that that allows OT and the surrounding land to be rebuilt and developed in phases over time but one that makes the site look architecturally complete.

I personally think the South Stand needs to be demolished and rebuilt with steeper stands; a second tier that overhangs the railway, and a stepped bridge over the railway that provides access to the second tier. We should build the players tunnel centrally on the halfway line and construct a tunnel club to drive matchday revenues.

To create more space inside Old Trafford, we should build a separate building in front of the SAF Stand that can hold a new ticket office, the worlds biggest Megastore on the ground floor, a world class interactive museum on the floors above and a huge RedCafe (open to the public during the week) on the top floor with views across to Trafford Park/Salford Quays. We should build a bridge linking the museum to the SAF stand to improve museum/stadium tour experiences. By doing this, we create more space to make lounges/suites bigger and widen concourses/toilet blocks for the fans etc. The space taken up by the Megastore currently could be turned into something interesting, something like a 'History of Old Trafford' exhibition (£5 entry on matchdays!) or a sports bar etc.

Old Trafford's facade/roof needs big investment. For the facade, I personally think we should go for a timeless design that reflects the history of the industrial area but one that is still modern/contemporary. A mixture of red brick and glass with red lights (for night matches) would look great in my opinion.

There is enormous potential to revamp Old Trafford, and quite frankly, architectural firms all over the world will be queuing up to create a design that reflects Old Trafford's historical importance. It will cost a fortune but it will be worth it!

First and foremast lets improve on the pitch first but it would be nice if the Glazers could show this level of ambition!
 
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It would be a massive mistake and a real shame to leave Old Trafford to move to new stadium.

As more and more clubs are leaving their spiritual homes to move to soulless glass bowls, Old Trafford should be seen as an amazing opportunity for the club to differentiate themselves against their competitors.

Commercially, Old Trafford adds so much more to the brand value of Manchester United than any new stadium could. To play in a stadium that is over 100 years old is unique and commercially very appealing. Old Trafford has survived two world wars; provided the stage for the Busby Babes and rebirth of the club after Munich; seen Best, Law and Charlton showcase their skills; watched the rise of the Class of 92 and total dominance of English football under the greatest manager of all time, and witnessed so many legendary players and unique moments. You can build a state-of-the-art stadium (that will eventually be surpassed) but you can never build another Old Trafford and all the memories that it holds. No new stadium can provide such pride for its fans. When I go to Old Trafford I can sense the ghosts of history - it's an incredible experience. In many ways, the story of Manchester United is told through Old Trafford. That is special and it should inspire the players.

That being said, Old Trafford definitely needs investment as it's looking tired and dated. The club needs to employ an architect to design an overall masterplan for OT and the surrounding land. A plan that that allows OT and the surrounding land to be rebuilt and developed in phases over time but one that makes the site look architecturally complete.

I personally think the South Stand needs to be demolished and rebuilt with steeper stands; a second tier that overhangs the railway, and a stepped bridge over the railway that provides access to the second tier. We should build the players tunnel centrally on the halfway line and construct a tunnel club to drive matchday revenues.

To create more space inside Old Trafford, we should build a separate building in front of the SAF Stand that can hold a new ticket office, the worlds biggest Megastore on the ground floor, a world class interactive museum on the floors above and a huge RedCafe (open to the public during the week) on the top floor with views across to Trafford Park/Salford Quays. We should build a bridge linking the museum to the SAF stand to improve museum/stadium tour experiences. By doing this, we create more space to make lounges/suites bigger and widen concourses/toilet blocks for the fans etc. The space taken up by the Megastore currently could be turned into something interesting, something like a 'History of Old Trafford' exhibition (£5 entry on matchdays!) or a sports bar etc.

Old Trafford's facade/roof needs big investment. For the facade, I personally think we should go for a timeless design that reflects the history of the industrial area but one that is still modern/contemporary. A mixture of red brick and glass with red lights (for night matches) would look great in my opinion.

There is enormous potential to revamp Old Trafford, and quite frankly, architectural firms all over the world will be queuing up to create a design that reflects Old Trafford's historical importance. It will cost a fortune but it will be worth it!

First and foremast lets improve on the pitch first but it would be nice if the Glazers could show this level of ambition!
Interesting ideas there, top post.
 

Buster15

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It would be a massive mistake and a real shame to leave Old Trafford to move to new stadium.

As more and more clubs are leaving their spiritual homes to move to soulless glass bowls, Old Trafford should be seen as an amazing opportunity for the club to differentiate themselves against their competitors.

Commercially, Old Trafford adds so much more to the brand value of Manchester United than any new stadium could. To play in a stadium that is over 100 years old is unique and commercially very appealing. Old Trafford has survived two world wars; provided the stage for the Busby Babes and rebirth of the club after Munich; seen Best, Law and Charlton showcase their skills; watched the rise of the Class of 92 and total dominance of English football under the greatest manager of all time, and witnessed so many legendary players and unique moments. You can build a state-of-the-art stadium (that will eventually be surpassed) but you can never build another Old Trafford and all the memories that it holds. No new stadium can provide such pride for its fans. When I go to Old Trafford I can sense the ghosts of history - it's an incredible experience. In many ways, the story of Manchester United is told through Old Trafford. That is special and it should inspire the players.

That being said, Old Trafford definitely needs investment as it's looking tired and dated. The club needs to employ an architect to design an overall masterplan for OT and the surrounding land. A plan that that allows OT and the surrounding land to be rebuilt and developed in phases over time but one that makes the site look architecturally complete.

I personally think the South Stand needs to be demolished and rebuilt with steeper stands; a second tier that overhangs the railway, and a stepped bridge over the railway that provides access to the second tier. We should build the players tunnel centrally on the halfway line and construct a tunnel club to drive matchday revenues.

To create more space inside Old Trafford, we should build a separate building in front of the SAF Stand that can hold a new ticket office, the worlds biggest Megastore on the ground floor, a world class interactive museum on the floors above and a huge RedCafe (open to the public during the week) on the top floor with views across to Trafford Park/Salford Quays. We should build a bridge linking the museum to the SAF stand to improve museum/stadium tour experiences. By doing this, we create more space to make lounges/suites bigger and widen concourses/toilet blocks for the fans etc. The space taken up by the Megastore currently could be turned into something interesting, something like a 'History of Old Trafford' exhibition (£5 entry on matchdays!) or a sports bar etc.

Old Trafford's facade/roof needs big investment. For the facade, I personally think we should go for a timeless design that reflects the history of the industrial area but one that is still modern/contemporary. A mixture of red brick and glass with red lights (for night matches) would look great in my opinion.

There is enormous potential to revamp Old Trafford, and quite frankly, architectural firms all over the world will be queuing up to create a design that reflects Old Trafford's historical importance. It will cost a fortune but it will be worth it!

First and foremast lets improve on the pitch first but it would be nice if the Glazers could show this level of ambition!
Excellent post.
Commercially, would you agree that funding for some of the improvement could come from naming rights.
 

Pass and Move

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Sorry for the bump but I didn’t want to start a whole thread for this.
I’ve always thought that were I to be sitting behind the dugout at Old Trafford, I’d be tempted to shout out tactical advice, or substitution demands.
Do the ticket holders in that position get warned against this? Always wondered.
 

Sir Matt

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Since there's not likely to be football with supporters for the foreseeable future, Woodward and the Glazers should get cracking on repairing and updating Old Trafford. Construction may not be able to begin until the current mandate to stay home ends, but there probably won't be football in full stadiums until there's an effective vaccine. It would provide the club with a window to make improvements and needed repairs without worrying about matchdays.

Obviously the planning and approval processes can't be rushed through, but at least they should be able to carry out much needed maintenance.
 

Ashish Negi

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So Real Madrid rebuilding or renovating their stadium.

If and if only Glazers cared about club, this pandemic was perfect time to rebuild the Old Trafford. Fans can't attend the games so we could have played any where this season and rebuild Old Trafford.
 

RashyForPM

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Sorry for the bump but I didn’t want to start a whole thread for this.
I’ve always thought that were I to be sitting behind the dugout at Old Trafford, I’d be tempted to shout out tactical advice, or substitution demands.
Do the ticket holders in that position get warned against this? Always wondered.
I’m 7 months late but this is a very interesting post and idea :lol: Especially on the day you posted this where we beat City 2-0 and were only 1-0 up for about an hour, I know I’d give my two cents.
 

Bestietom

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So Real Madrid rebuilding or renovating their stadium.

If and if only Glazers cared about club, this pandemic was perfect time to rebuild the Old Trafford. Fans can't attend the games so we could have played any where this season and rebuild Old Trafford.
I agree. But Glazers won't put THEIR money into rebuild, either for stadium or team.
 
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I agree. But Glazers won't put THEIR money into rebuild, either for stadium or team.
Tbf on that one, no owner would put their own money into building a new stadium. City/PSG being possible exceptions.

If lucky they use the clubs revenue, like United used to to expand OT during the 90s 00s or when building a new stadium it gets financed through banks and deals eg Spurs and Arsenal etc.
 

InfiniteBoredom

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The thing is any renovation or increase in capacity for OT doesn’t make financial sense. Even without the pandemic, we are barely filling all the seats for league matches and European fixtures, let alone FAC/LC. Investing half a billion pound in to renovate the place and bring capacity to 90-95k will take about 20 years to pay off the investment, at minimum, and by then it will need another round.

Without some sort of outside injection of capital, I don’t think it’s on the horizon, no matter what the club says.
 

Snuffkin

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Buy that toilet block of a hotel off the muppets and knock it down. Safe standing, and it's good.
 

stevoc

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So Real Madrid rebuilding or renovating their stadium.

If and if only Glazers cared about club, this pandemic was perfect time to rebuild the Old Trafford. Fans can't attend the games so we could have played any where this season and rebuild Old Trafford.
So when the club is making less money it's the perfect time to spend even more money?

Interesting.
 

romufc

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The thing is any renovation or increase in capacity for OT doesn’t make financial sense. Even without the pandemic, we are barely filling all the seats for league matches and European fixtures, let alone FAC/LC. Investing half a billion pound in to renovate the place and bring capacity to 90-95k will take about 20 years to pay off the investment, at minimum, and by then it will need another round.

Without some sort of outside injection of capital, I don’t think it’s on the horizon, no matter what the club says.
I dont know what you mean by barely filling out seats?

Average attendances at OT have been over 74,000 in PL games. go check.
 

InfiniteBoredom

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I dont know what you mean by barely filling out seats?

Average attendances at OT have been over 74,000 in PL games. go check.
I didn’t word that well, what I meant is we are only getting to full capacity in PL/CL games (with FAC/LC factored in, that dropped to about 57k), which means we aren’t even getting as much money as possible from our current capacity.

Will another 15-20k seats able to be sold out as ST? Corporate seating? I’m fairly sceptical about it. Then come the extra retail/hospitality stuff that would come with renovations, will they be able to cover the rest of the outlay if we aren’t getting another 15k 25 games a season?
 

romufc

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I didn’t word that well, what I meant is we are only getting to full capacity in PL/CL games (with FAC/LC factored in, that dropped to about 57k), which means we aren’t even getting as much money as possible from our current capacity.

Will another 15-20k seats able to be sold out as ST? Corporate seating? I’m fairly sceptical about it. Then come the extra retail/hospitality stuff that would come with renovations, will they be able to cover the rest of the outlay if we aren’t getting another 15k 25 games a season?
Fair enough, I think the upgrade should be more to do with renovations than increasing capacity.
 

El Zoido

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Fans are already concerned that the club isn’t investing enough in the squad, could you imagine how things would be if the money was directed towards a stadium renovation?
 

wolvored

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I think the Charlton stand is the problem with any upgrade. If money was no object I was looking at how Spurs built a new stadium right next to their existing ground. Would we be able to do the same? We have the car parking space and roads are cheaper to reroute than railway track.
Arsenal fans moaned about moving from Highbury due to history etc, but once their new stadium had been built, no one moaned and as some fans have said, you make new history from the first match. If we could build the new stadium right next door we would still be in the same area where the history was made anyway. If you think about it every time OT has been updated, history has been wiped away.