Why Newcastle United are exploring stadium options

To move or not to move? It is a debate that will always split opinion among a football club’s fanbase.

A number of Premier League clubs have already made the decision in recent years to find a new home in order to grow on and off the pitch, but supporters are often left with the emotional wrench of leaving a historic stadium behind.

As talk about a potential stadium move for Newcastle United intensifies, BBC Sport looks at why the Magpies are weighing up the options.Newcastle have been hamstrung by Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) since the Saudi-led takeover in 2021, but the stadium is one area where the ambitious ownership can spend big without it impacting the club’s future financial capabilities.

Feasibility studies are ongoing, with concrete progress expected in the new year, while in October, following a meeting with the Fan Advisory Board (FAB), the club’s chief operations officer Brad Miller said expanding the stadium came with “risks” but called the decision a “once-in-a-lifetime investment”.

The topic of increasing the capacity at St James’ Park has long been discussed both in and out of the club, predating the takeover. In 1995, capacity reached 36,000 after Sir John Hall bought the club three years earlier, before rising to the current 52,000 in 2000.

Going any bigger than that is problematic because the Leazes Terrace housing block that sits behind the East Stand are listed buildings, protected against structural alterations.

Building on the Gallowgate Stand is possible after the surrounding land, originally sold off by previous owner Mike Ashley in 2019, was bought back in 2023. The Telegraph reported, external that if Newcastle ultimately decide to stay at St James’ Park, it is this stand that will become the focal point of any revamp.

Miller, along with chief executive Darren Eales, chief commercial officer Peter Silverstone and sporting director Paul Mitchell, met fans at an informal event last month and the topic of a new stadium was again discussed. Miller said any move would look to stay as close to the current location as possible and that a new stadium could more than double the revenue of their current home.

There have been suggestions of potentially building a new stadium on Leazes Park, located just behind the existing structure, while the Town Moor, a stretch of land just outside the city centre, has also been mooted as a possibility.

When contacted by BBC Sport, Newcastle City Council said no formal conversations with the club had taken place about relocating but they were open to having them in future, while Newcastle made no further comment but pointed us to the earlier story about the FAB meeting.