Leicester City Stadium Plan Gets Planning Permission

Leicester City Football Club has confirmed that it has passed a crucial planning hurdle in redeveloping its King Power Stadium home.

The club has had planning permission since 2021 for a project that includes an 8,000-seat expansion of the East Stand at the venue, a project that will also include a new fan zone, an arena for events, a new hotel, club retail outlet and an apartment tower.

In the latest development, the club has revealed it has now confirmed a section 106 agreement with the city council.

However, while construction workers may soon be acquiring JCB work clothes before heading to the venue, the club is seeking to amend its plans in light of what it calls “market dynamics which have changed significantly since the Club’s proposals were initially submitted”.

The statement added: “The Club’s acquisition of further adjacent land since the planning application was first submitted can now also be factored into our vision for the overall site,” noting this represents a chance to “strengthen the Club’s overall commercial proposition”.

Highlighting the importance of maximising the value of the investment the club’s Thai owners are making, the statement concluded: “The Club looks forward to advancing those detailed proposals, while continuing to monitor associated market conditions, which will enable us to plan an appropriate timeline for development work to commence.”

Once the project does get underway, the development may help make the stadium the best in the East Midlands, larger and more modern than both Derby County’s Pride Park and Nottingham Forest’s City Ground.

While Forest have played at the City Ground since 1898, their Midlands rivals have moved fairly recently, with Deby switching to Pride Park in the 1990s and Leicester moving to their current home from their old Filbert Street base in 2002.

However, the club’s profile and support have increased beyond the levels the current venue’s capacity of 32,261 can easily accommodate, following its extraordinary Premier League triumph in 2016. This prompted the ambitious expansion plans.

The club also won the FA Cup in 2021, when the expansion plans were first mooted, but since then its fortunes have taken a huge turn for the worse when the team was relegated from the Premier League last season.

However, with the club top of the Championship at the time of writing, top flight football could soon be back, sparking a major revival, larger crowds and increased income for the club.

The construction of new stadiums does not always go hand-in-hand with success, of course; Everton have been struggling despite finally establishing a site to build a replacement stadium for their outdated Goodison Park home. There is no guarantee that their on-field difficulties, including almost being relegated last season, will change when they move in.

At least the construction work is progressing well at the £760 million Bramley Moore Dock venue, with the venue ready for the club to move in halfway through next season. However, after a consultation with fans, the club has opted to delay the switch to the 52,888-seat arena until the start of the start of the 2025-26 season.