League One side Wimbledon overcame a "major hurdle" in its bid to build a new 20,000-seat ground at Plough Lane. Despite the club’s plans having received the approval of Merton Council in Dec. '15, Historic England has been considering whether the Wimbledon Greyhound Stadium, which currently occupies the site, "should be deemed a listed building." The Secretary of State for Culture, Media & Sport confirmed on Wednesday that it "decided not to list the venue," meaning the club can "push ahead" with its development (London EVENING STANDARD, 6/21).
Second Bundesliga side Union Berlin announced plans to "increase the capacity" of the Alten Forsterei Stadium from 22,012 to around 37,000 by '20. The €38M ($42.4M) reconstruction work, due to begin in '19, "will mean the stadium has a standing capacity of 28,692 -- just short of the 29,400 at Borussia Dortmund's Westfalenstadion." Seating capacity, meanwhile, will be increased to more than 8,000 to meet German Football League requirements for top-flight football (ESPN.com, 6/21).
Wrexham's Racecourse ground "deserves a boost if government money is available to back a new arena in Cardiff," a Plaid Cymru AM said. Llyr Gruffydd said that he "read with amazement" that Economy Secretary Ken Skates supported proposals for another venue in the capital. The Plaid AM for North Wales said that there was already "a plethora of venues along the M4 corridor" (BBC, 6/21).