Omar Berrada interview on the new Old Trafford stadium

We’re in Foster + Partners, who have also been behind the Carrington redevelopment. How is this project, I mean, first of all, is that redevelopment going well? Is that on track to be completed for the summer at Carrington?

“Yeah, we’re on track to open it by early August and, again, you know, we should be really proud of what it’s going to be. It’s going to be a state-of-the-art training facility. And we’re going to be able to have some of the best equipment in the new facilities and the best design, which, as you know, has been done by Norman Foster’s. So that should really bring the spirits up and, you know, make the players feel that they’re operating in an elite environment. And I think we should all be proud of that.”

So, on top of that, how does this project redevelopment and regeneration fit in with the Carrington redevelopment, but also the plans that we’ve heard about Project 150?

“Yeah, it’s all part of the vision to getting the club back at the top, right? Project 150 speaks to the 150th-anniversary milestone, which is a massive milestone for us, and it’s a way of focusing our minds and our energy to hit certain objectives. And we would like to win the 21st league title by 2028. We would like our women’s team to win the first WSL in that timeframe, plus other objectives that we’ve set ourselves. So I think, you know, when we talk about Project 150, Mission 21, Mission One, all of that speaks to the ambition that we have and the vision that we have of getting the club back to the top and culminating, I hope, in the biggest and most iconic stadium in the world.”

You’ve mentioned Mission 21 and Mission One. What will the status of this stadium with regards to the women’s team be? Could this also be a home, a permanent home for Manchester United Women and possibly even the Academy sides as well? It’s a 100,000-seater stadium, but there have been mentions of a way it could be adapted to fit multiple different events…

“Correct. So one of the concepts around the design is can we adapt it to open it for games that have a lower attendance? That being said, I would love for a women’s team to be using this stadium as their only stadium. You know, our goal is to grow the fanbase, to grow the level of interest into the women’s team, so that the average attendance for home games goes up to such a level that the team can play there. This is a dream and there’s no reason why we can’t aim for that.”