Chelsea FC’s New Stadium: Get Up To Speed With Developments

Get up to speed with all the latest news and developments with regard to Chelsea FC’s plans to build a brand new Stamford Bridge.

On the 1^st December Chelsea Football Club submitted plans for a new 60,000-seat stadium which includes the demolition of the current 41,600-seat Stamford Bridge. In a statement on their official club website, Chelsea said that the new stadium would see “facilities improved for every area” and offer an “outstanding view” from every seat in an arena “designed to create an exciting atmosphere”.

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The designers Herzog & de Meuron, who created Bayern Munich’s stunning Allianz Arena and the newly built Bordeaux stadium in France, are the ones constructing the new stadium. The design of the stadium is believed to have taken inspiration from Westminster Abbey and the idea is to build a Cathedral- or Colosseum-like stadium to create an intimidating atmosphere.

Chelsea have been at Stamford Bridge since the club formed in 1905 with developments made in the 1990s, but Chelsea need to keep up with their competitors such as Arsenal and Manchester City who have much larger stadiums.

Owner Roman Abramovich wanted Chelsea to have a permanent new home as they saw redeveloping Stamford Bridge as “not feasible or viable”. The club had plans to build a new stadium in Battersea Power station but that was rejected. Chelsea didn’t have many suitable sites in London to build from scratch so they’ve decided to stick with their current location and build a brand new arena.

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Many of the season ticket holders at Chelsea were invited to consultations to gain feedback from them to see what they thought of the plans for the new stadium. Local residents were also invited, whether Chelsea fans or not, to see if they approve of the idea. Redeveloping a site in the area could cause problems to them so it is important for the club to consider their opinions as well.

The stadium will allow spectators to have direct access from Fulham Broadway tube station to ensure efficient and safer travelling to and from the station. The surrounding area of the stadium will also see a new restaurant/café built along with new hotels and club shop/museum. It is also believed that Fulham Road will no longer be closed after home games despite a higher number of spectators exiting the stadium, which will please most people. Traffic can be a problem in the Fulham area when Chelsea are at home so being able to keep a busy artery open is great news.

The club are still in the planning process and that will last until beyond next season with redevelopment likely to start in 2017. The plan is for Chelsea to play their first game in the new stadium in August 2020. During the time of the redevelopment, Chelsea will have to find a temporary home with Wembley and Twickenham stadiums likely destinations.

Recently, Chelsea have been linked with a move to the Olympic Stadium. Although it is to be used by West Ham from next season, it is possible that both clubs could share the stadium during the redevelopment of Stamford Bridge.

Having said that, Chelsea currently look most likely to use Wembley Stadium. The Blues may have to share with Tottenham Hotspur for the 2017-18 season as they are also looking for a temporary home while their stadium is being redeveloped.

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There are certainly exciting times ahead for Chelsea Football Club as hopefully a new chapter will be written in the club’s history with an upgraded home on the horizon.