#stadium-redevelopment

#stadium-redevelopment

WREXHAM, Wales -- Wrexham's celebrity owners have sold a minority stake in their on-the-rise soccer club to Apollo Sports Capital, a U.S.-based private equity firm. The deal, which was announced on Monday with no terms disclosed, includes investment by Apollo in the redevelopment of Wrexham's stadium and the surrounding area in the small Welsh city brought to fame by its namesake soccer club since American actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac bought it in 2021 and helped create a popular docuseries about the community.

The Maradona Stadium needs to be completely redesigned. It can't be renovated while keeping everything as it is. We need world-class architects and a modern, functional design. In London, they demolished and rebuilt it. Here, they're debating whether to demolish the Maradona. We need parking, spaces, and modern services. How can I compete with Inter and Milan without a 70,000-seat stadium, without 120 modern skyboxes, and without space for an anteroom in the restrooms?

We miss Barcelona a lot. With the kids, continuously, and my wife, we speak about things in Barcelona. The idea is to return there to live. We have our house there, everything, so that's what we want.

We can only get up to three million in that Maradona dump. That's quite a difference, isn't it? I said the same thing when [Carlo] Ancelotti arrived [in 2018]. Paris Saint-Germain pay the same rent for their stadium as we do, but they have full exclusivity and make 100 million euros a year, while we only have access for three days: before, during and after the match. It's an old stadium, with an athletics track and even a moat that pushes fans further away.

There is believed to be an appetite from the club's American owner, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment (KSE), to increase that to 70,000, which would significantly boost match-day revenues, and there are more than 100,000 supporters on the waiting list for season tickets. Arsenal set up a working group to examine the feasibility of any redevelopment last year, with sources indicating that discussions are continuing and that no decision has yet been made.

On a wet and windy night in Somerset, even so, they were made to work extremely hard for it by a stubborn Sale team who stuck in the fight and refused to go away. It was only with three minutes left that Max Ojomoh slid in to score his side's bonus point try to maintain his squad's perfect start to the campaign.

AC Milan and Inter Milan passed a major hurdle in owning their own stadium after the city council approved the sale of San Siro to the clubs early Tuesday after a nearly 12-hour overnight debate. The vote to sell the existing stadium and the surrounding areas was passed 24-20 at about 3 a.m. The clubs plan to tear down the 99-year-old stadium and jointly build a new 71,500-seat arena.

The comprehensive master plan introduces a wide range of new amenities, public spaces, and mixed-use facilities, supporting both Benfica's long-term financial sustainability and its community-focused mission.

Barcelona's homecoming won't be as complete as fans had hoped. The stadium will partially reopen on August 10, with ongoing construction leading to higher costs.