MIPIM | Everton’s advice to Manchester United? Don’t deviate
Sports-led redevelopment has been a key theme of MIPIM, with both Liverpool and Manchester touting stadium projects at the conference.
Although the Old Trafford announcement took centre stage, lessons in stadia development could be learned from Everton’s £500m, 52,000-seater at Bramley Moore Dock.
Five years ago, Colin Chong, chief executive of Everton Football Club, was presenting CGIs of Bramley Moore Dock at MIPIM, this year he took to the stage to present a finished arena, ready for operation for the start of the upcoming 2024-25 Premier League season.
He said: “We have demonstrated that given the opportunity, we can deliver. A 52,000-seater Premier League stadium in five years, that’s the reality of it.
“We are at least five years ahead of any other competitor, for my mind, any spare cash from central government should be going to support development in Liverpool, before it goes anywhere else, because it is an oven-ready opportunity for sports-led redevelopment.”
Colin Chong speaking at MIPIM 2025. Credit: PNW
Liverpool lessons for Manchester
Manchester United has set the target build time for its £2bn, 100,000-seater stadium at five years, the same timescale as Bramley Moore’s construction.
In order to deliver both punctually and on quality, Chong emphasised the need for realism.
On the project’s success, he said: “It’s the way we approached the project from day one. We had a very simplistic, streamlined work plan.
“It’s also about being realistic with the quality of the development that we needed to place on that site and being realistic about the risk associated with that site while making sure our then-ownership was brought along on the journey.
“They were always honest with demands – we said it’s going to take this long.”
In addition, Chong believes choosing the right contractor – Laing O’Rourke – was key.
He said: “We could have picked contractors that have gone bust, but we did our due diligence on the contractor, and it was heavily involved with the pre-construction activities. We allowed the contractor to influence the design without diluting our specifications.
“So it’s really about having a plan, having people around you to support the plan, and then sticking to the plan, we knew that as soon as we got planning approval, we could make a start within weeks of signing that off.”
Designs for Manchester United’s 100,000-capacity new build stadium were revealed at MIPIM 2025. Credit: PNW
He continued: “By working collaboratively with the contractor, you can share that risk load to who is best placed to manage it.
“We always had a scope of works and a price, and I said to our ownership at the time, once we’re in contract, don’t change it – and there was very little change.
“Once you’ve got a plan, stick to it, don’t deviate.”
The Old Trafford redevelopment can learn from the Everton success story, a similar plan for sports-led regeneration of brownfield sites in Greater Manchester.
Chong said the stadium’s first test event was “remarkably uneventful”, an indication that the club has “delivered what fans asked for”.
He added: “These are people that have got to leave Goodison Park, so it’s going to pull on heartstrings, so whatever we deliver for them has to be better.”
Nelson Dock sits directly south of Bramley Moore Dock. Credit: Google Earth
Nelson Dock
Colin Chong also revealed he’s always had “envious eyes” on Nelson Dock, the dock adjacent to the Everton stadium.
Negotiations to acquire the land at Nelson Dock, owned by Peel have begun, and Chong insists that talks must “make sure that whatever we do, we do it properly”.
He said: “There was always an idea that we might be able to develop a complementary development to support the stadium’s development.
“Our new ownership has tasked me with looking for a sports-led redevelopment that could be accommodated on Nelson Dock, and maybe even further if we can get the right partners to invest.
“We are currently going through a fact-finding mission, carrying out surveys, and hopefully we will have some information back in the next month or two.”
Following responses, the club will begin to look at masterplan design before going to market.
He continued: “Our owners are very keen to secure Nelson Dock because they believe they’ll do something good with it regardless – that’s their mindset, which is a breath of fresh air.
“If I was given a wish list, that would be on the top of it, secure Nelson Dock and protect the asset that we’ve just developed.”
He added: “We’re in a very unique position, there’s over £750m of investment already, and that’s probably the hardest part about sports-led regeneration.”
Goodison Park has been home to Everton Football Club since 1892. Credit Google Earth
Goodison Park
Chong revealed that there are several plans for the historic stadium, including the Goodison Park legacy project, but most likely is its potential hosting of Everton Women.
He also insisted that demolition is not on the cards: “We have no plans to demolish – we don’t have to straight away.
“We’re leaving a Premier League-fit stadium, it’s just not big enough for Everton’s growth plans, but it’s more than adequate to see women’s football through, probably for the next 10 or 15 years.”
Rather than demolition, the club favours deconstructing Goodison Park.
Chong said: “There are heritage assets at Goodison Park that we’d like to reclaim and there are some parts that the local fan base would like to retain themselves.”
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I was at the test event and huge credit is due to Everton and their delivery partners for a simply outstanding job. If I have one concern, it relates to the number and width of portals that they have punched through the listed dock wall to allow access/egress to the plaza. They don’t seem adequate to me, but let’s see what happens at the next event.
By Blue Boy
Everton need to push Peel to open the Rverside walkway asap to assist with crowd access and egress . The walkway is already passed princess dock two small bridges over the dock entrances by the Dockers clock needed but a safe route for lots of fans could be quickly delivered
By George
Love the idea. Great to have proper business people at the helm. UTFT
By Roger
The information about retaining Goodison Park was very heartening, it would be ideal for the women’s team and the under 21’s, etc. The Park End stand is still modern and should be retained, but the massive Goodison Rd stand maybe too much to retain and could be replaced by a smaller stand. A big decision would be whether to retain the Gwladys St and Bullens Rd historic stands or salvage the Leitch crisscross facias and incorporate them into new smaller stands.
Whatever there is still plenty of space behind the Park End to provide things like housing or other facilities, but ultimately what’s the point of paying Liverpool City Council the rent to use Walton Hall Park when you’ve got a great pitch and stadium at Goodison.
By Anonymous
Chong is correct. Regeneration money is needed now around Everton`s new stadium.
Instead, Burnham is pitching for £300m public money to move a freight terminal in Old Trafford to St Helens so that Man Utd. PLC can build a new stadium in about 8 years time at exorbitant cost.
By Lets be Realistic
I think one major concern that needs looking at is transport to and from the ground. There was only 10,000 at the first test event and it was chaos apparently at Sandhills station. The ground has taken five years to build but no one has thought of and put in place safe crowd transfer systems.
Parking is also looking to be a massive issue with restrictions put in place by Liverpool Council, which I hear are now being revised.
By Webby
It is clear Everton FC have ideas of filling in Nelson Dock. This must be outright rejected being made clear to the club. Liverpool has lost waterspaces at an alarming rate. The waterspaces are historic and must be preserved. If Everton want more land they can purchase on the land side of the Dock Road, where ramshackle industrial buildings are.
Bramley Moore Dock was infilled for a stadium far too small for the club, when a vastly superior site at Garston gasworks was available with a multi platform station adjacent.
By John
Stadium should have been bigger
By Andrew
Everton FC wanting to buy and fill in Nelson Dock should be resisted at all costs. The city was stripped of its World Heritage Site status by UNESCO as Bramley Moore Dock in the World Heritage zone was filled in. Yes, Everton FC’s stadium was one of the reasons for the World Heritage status being embarrassingly stripped from the city and even mentioned by UNESCO.
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The amount of dock filling in Liverpool over the decades amounts to a large port. We are a maritime city, enough is enough. The city will look like waterless Birmingham next. Nelson Dock needs to exist to act as a buffer between the stadium/sewage works to encourage quality developments in the rest of Central Docks.
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The stadium is too small as the new owners of Everton FC noted when securing the club a few months ago. They were considering halting construction, extending the west stand. The site is inadequate for such a large club, also with access only from one side – no kidding. That may improve with riverwall access. How it got planning permission? The mayor who proposed EFC move to the dock site is up in court for criminal corruption charges. All may be revealed.
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The large redundant Garston gasworks site near Garston docks was waiting for a large stadium, with a 6-platform station nearby and amazing road access, and even an airport next door, but the site was ignored by the club. The new owners are considering investing in the city, maybe they should consider converting this new stadium at Bramley Moore Dock into a needed additional multi-hall philharmonic hall and cultural centre, used 365 days per year, which was mooted for the Central Docks about 15-20 years ago. The exterior of the stadium is quite attractive so no issue there. That will attract investment. Freidkin, the new owners, could build a suitably sized football stadium at the superior Garston site, with its superb transport access. Then we all benefit and the new owners as well. A wrong could be put right.
By John