Old Trafford | Capacity, Location, Training Ground & Future Plans

Old Trafford Capacity, Design And Facilities

The Old Trafford Capacity is currently capped to just under 74,200. The average attendance for matches at the Old Trafford stadium in the 2024/25 season was around 73,474. The Manchester United stadium sees its pitch surrounded by four all-seater bucket-seat stands. Every single stand is covered by a roof above. There are four major stands which include the North Stand (Sir Alex Ferguson stand), the East Stand, the South Stand (Sir Bobby Charlton stand), and the West Stand (Stretford End stand). There are at least two tiers to every single stand, barring the Sir Bobby Charlton stand, which was restricted to only have one tier because of certain construction rules. There are stands in the north-west and north-east quadrants of the Old Trafford stadium too.

The most spacious stand at Old Trafford is the Sir Alex Ferguson stand, which has a capacity of 26,000. The West Stand, aka Stretford End stand, can hold up to 14,000 supporters, and the East Stand has a 12,000 capacity, which includes 3,000 seats allotted for the away fans. The smallest of the stands is the Sir Bobby Charlton stand, which can hold up to 9,400 fans.

Manchester United Stadium Turf

The measuring of the Manchester United football stadium pitch is 105 meters long by 68 meters wide. There are a few meters reserved for run-off space on each side as well. The club has opted to keep the centre of the pitch nine inches higher than the edge areas to ensure smoother running of surface water. There is an underground heating system 10 inches beneath the pitch. The Old Trafford stadium is fortunate enough to have natural grass, which is watered regularly and mowed three times a week from the November period as well as once from the November-March period.

Old Trafford Seating Plan

The Old Trafford capacity being well over 74,000 means that the Manchester United football stadium is spacious enough to allow fans to have a comfortable and enjoyable experience of watching matches. The Old Trafford seating plan has been developed in such a way that the entirety of the four main stands are used up well by the supporters. However, the cost of the Old Trafford seating plan does differ according to matches as well as other factors like the ages of fans.

The price of a matchday ticket for adult fans can range anything around £36 for the cheapest tickets (on the upper tiers) to £58 for comfortable seats. The price of a ticket for fans over the age of 65 for a single game averages £22-£28, and the same for junior (under 15 fans). The cost of tickets for young adult fans is around £29-£45.5, but the Old Trafford capacity is packed for the games against major teams, and tickets can cost much higher. Tickets can be bought at the Manchester United ticket office outside Old Trafford, while fans can also purchase them at websites like TicketCompare and SeatPick.

There are Hospitality Packages available as part of the Old Trafford seating plan, which boasts 140 boxes and 21 hospitality suites. The price of a hospitality ticket can cost anything between £149-£749, and it can be more for big games. Moreover, the club also offers the Old Trafford stadium tour, which allows fans to step into the dressing room, the media lounge, the Old Trafford tunnel, and the club's museum. The cost of a tour to Old Trafford is £28 for adults and £15 for juniors.

Manchester United Training Ground

The Manchester United training ground is named the Carrington training centre, which has been the training ground for the Manchester United players since 2000. The former Manchester United training ground was The Cliff, before the club moved to the state-of-the-art training complex that was built in 2000. The Manchester United training ground is less than 10 miles away from Old Trafford, and the Carrington training centre uses up 85 acres of land. There are 14 football pitches of a variety of different sizes, including 12 grass pitches as well as an Astroturf pitch and an artificial pitch indoors.

The Carrington training facility also boasts a dedicated goalkeeper training facility. There are different buildings for the Men's first team as well as a shared building for the Women's and Academy teams. There is a dedicated centre for media press conferences and a lounge for academy players. The Manchester United training ground also boasts facilities such as a gymnasium, indoor running tracks, basketball and squash courts, swimming pool, spa pool, hydrotherapy pools and sauna rooms for players in the Men's (main building). There are also classrooms, conference rooms, players' lounge, a restaurant and a manager's office in the building as well.

The Carrington training facility has been renovated twice, once in 2012 and then in the 2024-25 season. The latest set of renovations at the Manchester United training ground has seen the gym, medical rooms, nutrition and recovery areas improved to the latest world-class standards, as well as modernising the quality of the design of the training centre.

Manchester United New Stadium Plans

While Old Trafford is a legendary football stadium in England, it is also showing signs of age. The reports of leaks from the Old Trafford roof and poor hygiene qualities have compelled the new partner-owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos, to move ahead with Manchester United new stadium plans. The Old Trafford regeneration plans have seen the club confirm plans to build a new world-class football stadium that will be built by British architects Foster + Partners and will be located right next to the existing Old Trafford stadium.

This Manchester United new stadium is going to be a 100,000-seat stadium that is being projected to cost a whopping £2bn. The New Trafford stadium's conceptual art has shown that there might be three large 200-meter-high masts that are inspired by the club's trident club crest icon. There will be an umbrella-like roof structure, with the roof designed not only to protect fans but also collect rainwater and solar energy for the sustenance of the stadium. The club aims to complete the Manchester United new stadium in time for the beginning of the 2030-31 season.