Aston Villa may lose their hosting rights for Euro 2028 matches if Villa Park is not redeveloped in time, sources have told Football Insider.
The Birmingham-based club have put their £100million plans to redevelop the stadium on hold after concerns were raised by club executive Chris Heck.
Heck, the president of business operations at Villa, has paused all expansion plans as he believes reducing capacity for two years would be a “bad idea”.
Aston Villa” class=”wp-image-406910″ srcset=”https://www.footballinsider247.com/static/uploads/1/2022/04/GettyImages-1387134273-1-1024×703.jpg 1024w, https://www.footballinsider247.com/static/uploads/1/2022/04/GettyImages-1387134273-1-300×206.jpg 300w, https://www.footballinsider247.com/static/uploads/1/2022/04/GettyImages-1387134273-1-768×527.jpg 768w, https://www.footballinsider247.com/static/uploads/1/2022/04/GettyImages-1387134273-1-1140×783.jpg 1140w, https://www.footballinsider247.com/static/uploads/1/2022/04/GettyImages-1387134273-1-750×515.jpg 750w, https://www.footballinsider247.com/static/uploads/1/2022/04/GettyImages-1387134273-1.jpg 1200w” sizes=”(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px” />Initial plans were to expand the stadium’s capacity to over 50,000 by demolishing the North Stand over two seasons and rebuilding it with improved facilities and higher capacity.
However, that project would mean Villa have to play in front of just 36,000 fans for the next two seasons while construction was underway.
Heck said: “I think it would be a bad idea to tear down one of our stands for two years playing like we are. Going forward, everything should be about all fans.”
It is understood that the club are now exploring new ways to increase capacity and improve transport links without impacting the fanbase over two seasons.
Villa Park was named as one of 10 host venues for the upcoming European Championships in 2028, however, its spot was reliant on the stadium being redeveloped.
It is understood that Villa Park’s hosting rights are at risk if the club is not able to improve transport links and facilities in time – Uefa want all renovations completed the season before Euro 2028.
As per The Athletic, UEFA have previously stated that they expect 80 per cent of supporters to travel to Euro 2028 games at Villa Park on public transport.
Improvements to parking facilities are also expected by Uefa and Villa are now under pressure to finalise new plans with an appropriate timeline to keep their 2028 Euros hosting rights.
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By: Sean Fisher
Title: Exclusive: Aston Villa deal faces collapse after £100m plan update
Sourced From: www.footballinsider247.com/sources-aston-villa-deal-faces-collapse-after-100m-plan-update/
Published Date: Wed, 20 Dec 2023 16:00:00 +0000
