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Chelsea will not move into the new Stamford Bridge until "at least" '24 after club execs revealed "the extent of further delays" on its stadium redevelopment plans, according to Oliver Todd of the London DAILY MAIL. The club initially outlined a move-in date of the '21-22 season for its new stadium, but "will now not even depart" its current home until '20. A meeting with supporters' groups, attended by board members Bruce Buck and Marina Granovskaia, also saw Chelsea admit it would spend "another two-and-a-half seasons" at its existing 41,000-seat home. With those schedule changes, the club's first game at its £500M ($659M), 60,000-capacity new ground has been "pencilled in" for the opening fixture of the '24-25 season. Demolition of the current stadium's surroundings and building work on the adjacent railway line are "planned to start next year." Club officials added that there "was still the potential for further delays." A member of Chelsea's stadium project team said, "The local authority has been very helpful. We have legal matters and statutory approvals to resolve before any works can commence and this may take some time but is not unique to this project." Chelsea is understood "not to be concerned" by the planned '24 move-in date, with its "initial schedule always thought to have been optimistic" (
DAILY MAIL, 11/10).
