Cottage expansion granted

Fulham have been granted permission to turn Craven Cottage into a 30,000-seater stadium.

Development will allow Fulham to compete, says council leader

Fulham have been granted permission to turn Craven Cottage into a 30,000-seater stadium. Approval has been given to expand the capacity of the ground by an additional 4,300 seats. The decision was made by Hammersmith & Fulham (H&F) Council's planning applications committee on Thursday. The changes will see a new upper tier added to the Riverside Stand, while planning consent also allows for the partial demolition and rebuilding of the western ends of the Putney and Hammersmith stands. "Craven Cottage is the historic home of Fulham," said H&F Council leader Nicholas Botterill. "This modest expansion, which will be carried out in a sensitive and sensible way, will allow the club to remain competitive in the top tier of English football. "It will also remove the existing, rather ugly, Riverside Stand." Fulham have been in the Premier League since winning promotion as champions under Jean Tigana in 2001.