The new Old Trafford is set to be put up for FIFA’s consideration for the 2035 Women’s World Cup — but only once the stadium plans are confirmed.
The United Kingdom, the sole bidder, officially submitted its joint proposal to host the tournament, which would be the largest single-sport event staged in the country if successful, to football’s world governing body on Friday.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe bid put forward a long list of 22 stadiums — 16 in England, three in Wales, two in Scotland and one in Northern Ireland — across 16 host cities. FIFA will narrow down that list to 16 around the year 2029.
In March, Manchester United announced ambitious plans to build a 100,000-capacity new stadium rather than redevelop their existing Old Trafford home.
As it stands, the UK’s bid proposal includes Manchester United’s current Old Trafford stadium as there is not enough information about the new build for FIFA to assess. The bid, however, references the new stadium, dubbed the Wembley of the North, with the intention that the new venue will be evaluated. Wembley Stadium is the only shortlisted stadium that meets FIFA’s technical requirements for a final. FIFA will decide which stadiums are selected during their final evaluation process.
There are other venues, such as Birmingham’s Powerhouse Stadium — a development with a proposed capacity of 62,000, forming part of a significant urban development inthe city — which have also not been built yet. Chelsea have been included on the stadium shortlist while they are considering options for their new home, as Stamford Bridge in its current form does not meet FIFA’s technical specifications. Wrexham are also planning to increase their stadium capacity before 2035, which would meet FIFA requirements.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“From the early plans, they could be really exciting,” England FA CEO Mark Bullingham told reporters ahead of the announcement. “If they are built, we’d obviously want them included in the tournament, so it would be right, if you look ten years down the road, to have the best stadia the country has included.”
Stadium selection depends on location, whether new stadia will be built in time and how ambitious hosts want to be with ticket sales.
“We believe we can build on the success of Women’s Euro 2022 and deliver a tournament that’s about eight times bigger than that,” said Bullingham.
The UK Football Associations (FAs) are predicting around 4.5million tickets to be sold with a global TV audience of 3.5 billion.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“When we look at 16 host cities spread across host cities in the UK, 63 million people live within two hours of a match venue that we’re proposing,” Bullingham added. “It brings together the whole country and some of the most recognisable cities and stadia that we have.”
In 2031, the Women’s World Cup will expand from 32 to 48 teams. For the 2035 edition, the UK will have to provide 48 team base camps, 82 venue-specific training sites and 32 fan festivals.
Bullingham is confident the country has the infrastructure to cope with that many teams.
“We’re lucky we have the stadia and training bases that we do,” he said. “We can run this tournament without building anything new, but we want the new stadia to be included should they be done.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“We’re in a great place with government. They have to provide certain guarantees, and we’re very happy with where we’ve got to with them. There are legal agreements with everything from airports to hotels to training sites to stadia.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “Our bid to host the 2035 FIFA Women’s World Cup shows the UK’s passion for football. The Lionesses’ success has inspired girls across our country, and we’ll build on that momentum by welcoming millions of football fans from around the world to a tournament that will benefit communities and businesses in host cities up and down the UK. With significant investment in school sport and grassroots facilities through our Plan for Change, we’re creating opportunities for girls to play for their national team.”
FIFA will make a final decision on the UK’s bid in Vancouver on April 30, 2026.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Manchester United, England, International Football, Women's Soccer
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