Aston Villa has unveiled plans to increase Villa Park’s capacity to over 50,000 seats. The North Stand will be expanded to accommodate more than 12,000 fans, though the club has decided against constructing an entirely new stand.

After much deliberation, a smarter solution was found

Initially, the club planned to demolish the North Stand in the summer of 2023. However, Chris Heck, President of Business Operations, abandoned those plans due to the prospect of playing two seasons with only 36,000 fans in attendance, which would have led to significant financial losses. Had the original plan gone ahead, Villa would have played Champions League matches with an empty stand opposite the Holte End — a situation that would have continued into the following season. Now, the club believes it has found a smarter solution to increase stadium capacity without disrupting matchday operations.

Construction work is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2027, in time for UEFA Euro 2028, where Villa Park has been selected as one of the tournament venues. The redevelopment project is valued at around £100 million and will be funded by the club's owners.

© Aston Villa

The project extends beyond the stadium itself

The stadium expansion will be accompanied by improvements to the local transport network. Since the initial announcement in 2022, Birmingham Mayor Richard Parker has pledged to rebuild Witton Station. Proposed upgrades include new passenger shelters, expanded queuing systems, a new pedestrian bridge, and higher-capacity trains — aiming to double matchday station capacity to 10,000 passengers.

The club emphasized that without these transport improvements, the stadium expansion could not proceed — and Villa Park could risk losing its Euro 2028 hosting role.

© Aston Villa

A new era for Aston Villa

Nassef Sawiris underlined that ever since he and Wes Edens acquired Aston Villa in 2018 — with Atairos joining as a partner in 2024 — their ambition has been to restore the club’s place at the top of English and European football, transforming it into a global brand and a European powerhouse. He stressed that thanks to the mayor’s commitment to improving Witton Station and the surrounding transport infrastructure, the North Stand expansion will mark a major milestone in turning Villa Park into a world-class sports and entertainment venue. The modernized and enlarged North Stand will allow more fans to support the team live and will significantly strengthen the club’s investment potential and long-term competitiveness.