In November 2021, Crystal Palace announced that the expansion of the new main stand had been postponed by a year. After 10 months it seems that things are moving in the right direction. Club chairman Steve Parish believes the South London club remains "absolutely committed" to the project.

On the matter of Crystal Palace's stadium expansion, everyone seems to agree. It will happen sooner or later, but the question remains: when? Having published the first renderings of the renovated Selhurst Park in 2017, CPFC hoped to break ground as early as 2018. Four years have passed since then, but the optimism can now be poured into the hearts of supporters thanks to the latest words of the club's chairman.

© Crystal Palace FC / KSS Design Group

In 2018, the Premier League club received permission from Croydon Council to increase the capacity of the current Selhurst Park to around 34,000 seats by rebuilding the main stand. Although it was not possible to start work at the end of the second decade of the 21st century, the club subsequently reported that the renovation was still due to be completed before the end of 2021. In the meantime, many complications related to land ownership and pandemic have occurred, with work on the stadium not having started until today.

Recently, the club's main focus has been mainly on a £20 million redevelopment of its academy. With all the upheaval and uncertainty brought about by COVID, we have focused on the Academy as well as first-team Training Ground developments. The final wing of the Academy will open early 2023 and it will take the whole facility to extraordinary new levels - said Crystal Palace chairman, Steve Parish.

© Crystal Palace FC / KSS Design Group

New western main grandstand of Selhurst Park is expected to aid Crystal Palace in becoming one of England's biggest clubs. It will also increase its position in London itself, where more and more betting sites are opening up, according to Casivo. This will happen both by extending ticket availability and boosting the club's commercial potential. Expected annual revenue from the structure should be around £15 million, which means the project would pay for itself in 5-7 years.

The Selhurst Park redevelopment will exceed £100m of investment, and I’m sure supporters can appreciate the scale, complexity and enormity of this project. But it is something we are absolutely committed to. I’d like to thank Croydon Council for their continued support in enabling us to update the application since the resolution to grant planning permission was issued. (...) We very much hope to make significant progress in the coming months, and will keep supporters and stakeholders updated as and when we have more news - added Parish.

© Crystal Palace FC / KSS Design Group

The capacity of the stand will grow from the previous 5,400 to 13,500 and the vast majority of the seats will be available in general admission. Only 2,500 business seats are planned, as well as 16-28 private boxes, including one of Europe's first 'tunnel clubs', offering guests a view of the players in the tunnel and mixed zone.

The 41-meter-tall structure will not require any of the surrounding buildings' demolition, though the stadium's blueprint will increase significantly. But more than its size, the architecture raised some eyebrows. Though widely expected, it's still impressive that both the symbol of Crystal Palace pavilion of 1851 and eagle's wings are incorporated into the facade.