Featured image credit: James Cracknell/CC BY-SA 4.0/Edited for size
Ipswich Borough Council has confirmed Premier League football club Ipswich Town has an “in-principle agreement” to acquire a large plot of land to aid the potential expansion of its Portman Road stadium.
The proposed deal would see the club acquire part of a car park located behind the Cobbold Stand, which, after being constructed in 1971, is currently the oldest stand at the stadium Ipswich has called home since 1884.
The latest news comes after the Council set out its own plan in March to redevelop other areas of the New Portman Road car park, with a new aquatics centre at the heart of this vision, along with a hotel and park areas.
The Council today (Wednesday) told the BBC it was an “exciting project and partnership” with the club. “The Portman Road masterplan features plans for an aquatics centre, a multi-storey car park, a hotel and designated space for Ipswich Town Football Club’s development and expansion,” a spokesman said.
The Council has previously said that redevelopment could see the stadium’s alignment changed. Ipswich has returned to the Premier League this season following promotion from the Championship in 2023-24, with the club investing £10m (€12m/$12.9m) this summer on various improvements to Portman Road.
Speaking to The Athletic last week, Ipswich chief executive, Mark Ashton, said: “We’ve got big plans for the stadium, including a potential expansion when the time is right.
“We’ve agreed to buy the land behind the Cobbold Stand to do it but, like everything, it’s about timing. We would lose 4,000 fans for 18 months during the rebuild.”
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