The expansion, which was given approval by Liverpool City Council in June, will see 7,000 more seats added to the Anfield Road Stand, taking the stadium's overall capacity to more than 61,000; the redevelopment is set to be completed for the 2023/24 season
Wednesday 22 September 2021 13:12, UK
Liverpool have confirmed the club's proposed expansion of the Anfield Road Stand will move forward, with an official ground-breaking ceremony planned for next week.
The expansion, which was given approval by Liverpool City Council in June, will see 7,000 more seats added to the Anfield Road Stand, taking the stadium's overall capacity to more than 61,000.
It follows the redevelopment of Anfield's Main Stand, which was completed in 2016.
"The redeveloped Anfield Road Stand is anticipated to be ready for the 2023-24 season and its design will see the lower tier retained and refurbished with a new upper tier built above it," read a club statement.
"Throughout the design process, careful consideration has once again been given to Anfield's world-class atmosphere through the development of an acoustic and lighting strategy to match that of the one developed with the Main Stand."
The redevelopment of the Anfield Road stand will follow the same method at the Main Stand, with the build taking place throughout the season while matches continue to be played.
The expansion is set to make Liverpool's stadium the third largest in the Premier League in terms of capacity, behind Manchester United's Old Trafford and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium - with West Ham's London Stadium currently operating with a capacity of 60,000 for football matches.
Liverpool expect the redevelopment to create 400 new matchday roles, in addition to the 2,200 people currently employed by the club at each home game.
Anfield will also be able to host up to six concerts and major events at the stadium for a period of five seasons as part of the planning permission.
The expansion, which has been planned since 2014, has been given the green light following two stages of public consultation.
"We have been clear from the beginning that in order for this expansion to go ahead we needed the co-operation of local residents and the community, to successfully navigate the complex planning landscape and to ensure the project is financially viable," said Liverpool's managing director Andy Hughes.
"We needed certainty for this project to progress and are now in a position to be able to move forward.
"We began this journey in 2014 and are grateful to everyone for the contributions they have made to bring the project to this stage."
