Back in July, The Villans announced the expansion of the stadium in Birmingham to prepare it for Euro 2028. The permission was granted in October, but in December they halted work at Villa Park before it could begin. They cited... over-performance as the reason.

The trend for renewing stadiums has not escaped Birmingham

More and more clubs in England are changing their stadiums. Recent examples include Fulham and Everton, but this year Aston Villa has joined the group. The club, which is known not to be short of money, has announced a £100 million expansion of Villa Park to prepare the venue for the European Championships, to be hosted by Great Britain and Ireland in 2028.

The project, the implementation of which was expected to take two years, included not only an increase in the number of seats from 43,000 to 50,000 thanks to the rebuilding of the North Stand, but also the refurbishment of the façade and the redevelopment of 'The Warehouse', an entertainment and commercial sector to host concerts and other major events in the city. The club assured that the stadium would be 'world class' and it would allow Birmingham to host international sport competitions.

© Grimshaw, Trivandi / Aston Villa Football Club

The fortress cannot be demolished

The plans may have been thwarted by problems on site, objections by the city authorities or lack of time, but no one expected the victories achieved at Villa Park by the local team to do it. However, Chris Heck, president of business operations, said: We say Villa Park is a fortress. It is. There is no better home advantage than at Villa Park.

Closing the North Stand for redevelopment would reduce the stadium's capacity to 34,000 seats, which could leave fans unhappy and affect the results. And these are clear - Aston Villa have won each of their eight home games in the Premier League, giving them 38 points after 17 rounds and sitting in third place, a point behind the leader, Arsenal.

It’s understandable why Chris Heck finds it impractical for a project that would cause ¼ of the stadium to close for two years, especially as The Villans' good season can raise hopes for attendance records. Whether there will be a better time to readapt the stadium remains an open question as UEFA indicates that the work has to be completed a season before the Championships, making the next opportunity possibly not appear until after 2028.

© Grimshaw, Trivandi / Aston Villa Football Club