Liverpool’s Anfield renovation delayed “at least 12 months”

Liverpool’s expensive expansion of Anfield will have to wait a year thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The delay has to be a full year because construction needs to be done in a single season.

The Anfield Road end expansion would see the club add around 7,000 seats to its capacity likely in general admission seating, and would also require the club to alter the actual Anfield Road.

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Here’s club chief operating officer, Andy Hughes, from LiverpoolFC.com:

“The complex build programme for Anfield Road is an 18-month process and needs two clear summer closed season windows in order for it to be successful. This is why we are pausing on the project for at least 12 months so the earliest we could complete the programme is summer 2023 rather than summer 2022 as originally planned. Given the planning application is no longer time-critical, it is our intention to submit our planning application at some stage during the next 12 months.”

The financial challenges of the coronavirus likely play a massive role in addition to the obvious logistic obstacles of deploying workers.

The Liverpool Echo also notes that the Premier League leaders are “keen not to have any stadium work impact the football itself and will conclude the development in between seasons.”