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Liverpool FC stadium on hold

Catherine Deshayes

Liverpool Football Club's planned new 73,000-seat stadium has been put on the backburner.

Liverpool FC has announced that the plans for their new stadium in Stanley Park have been delayed yet again.

The announcement, which came in a club statement today, August 29^th, 2008, comes as little surprise to many, who fear that American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett were having trouble raising the funds for the £400 million new ground, which will be built adjacent to the current Anfield site.

When the new owners took over 18 months ago they immediately redesigned previous plans and had to allow for new planning permission, and the stadium has already been delayed numerous times in the past due to redesigns.

The current credit crunch is being blamed for the latest delay, even though enabling work has already started in and around Stanley Park.

The development will provide around 150,000 sq ft of mixed-use space, known as Anfield Plaza, including offices, shops, restaurants, apartments and a hotel.

A spokesman for the club said, "Our commitment to building a new world class Liverpool Football Club stadium is undiminished.

"Like many other major development projects in the UK and overseas we are affected by global market conditions and as such work on the project will be delayed in the short term.

"We will use this period productively and progress the proposals for the stadium to increase its capacity to 73,000 seats," the spokesman added.

The club is hoping to complete the stadium in time for the 2011-2012 football season.