Newcastle United set for St James' Park expansion - on one condition

Newcastle United are set to progress with plans to expand St James’ Park after concluding a feasibility study on the site.

The club’s preference has always been to expand the current stadium, which has been Newcastle’s home since its formation in 1892.

Following a six-month feasibility study from experts and world-leading architects, the club have received a logistical green light to progress with plans to increase St James’ Park’s capacity to more than 60,000.

The Telegraph has also reported that the multi-million pound redevelopment has been described as ‘one of the most ambitious stadium rebuilds seen in this country’ and will involve a complete modernisation of St James’ Park. Any construction work at the stadium is likely to be subject to the club extending its current leasehold, which expires in 2097.

The club currently pays Newcastle City Council ground rent as part of the lease agreement and would want to ensure an extended lease is agreed prior to expanding the stadium. The current 99-year lease was agreed around the time Newcastle’s previous expansion of St James’ Park started to take place in the summer of 1998.

St James’ Park’s city centre location close to listed buildings and the Leazes Conservation Area has often been viewed as a major roadblock when it comes to any further expansion of the stadium.

But the club purchasing the land at Strawberry Place which is currently set to host a new STACK fan zone has renewed hope of expanding the Gallowgate Stand in the coming years. The St James’ STACK is set to remain in place for the next three years as things stand.

St James’ Park is set to host European Championships matches in the summer of 2028, further complicating the timeframe in which an expansion could take place. As things stand, there are no confirmed dates or schedules for when work would take place.

A complete stadium rebuild has previously been considered on nearby Leazes Park, with independent concept images shared online earlier this month. But that would only resurface as a possibility if the club were unable to reach an agreement with Newcastle City Council regarding a leasehold.

The feasibility study has provided Newcastle with the plans needed to make expanding St James’ Park in its current guise a reality.

Speaking back in January while the study was taking place, Newcastle chief executive Darren Eales said: “St James’ Park is a great location at the heart of the community, up on the hill, and if we can expand St James’ Park, then clearly that would make sense. But we have to know what’s possible.

"That is our number one approach, and that’s what our experts are doing now. We’ve got world leaders looking at it in terms of what is architecturally possible and what that would mean from a capacity and revenue perspective.

"If there’s a way that we can expand St James’ Park, then all things being equal, that would be the route that we would like to take.”