Chelsea FC keeps stadium plans on hold as planning permission expires
– Chelsea FC
Chelsea Football Club has allowed the planning permission for its new Herzog & de Meuron-designed stadium to lapse, keeping the project on hold until "economic conditions improve".
The English Premier League received planning permission in 2017 to build a 60,000-seat venue at the site of its current Stamford Bridge stadium.
But the club announced a year later that it had put the project on hold due to the "unfavourable investment climate" at the time.
The planned stadium was expected to cost around £1bn and had already received the green light from the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan.
Its striking brick-ribbed design was inspired by the terraced houses around the stadium and by the gothic architecture of Westminster Abbey, with a capacity for 60,000 fans.
In a statement, Chelsea FC said it would not look to utilise the planning permission it had received.
"We acknowledge that the planning permission we obtained for a new stadium expires on 31 March 2020," the statement reads.
"We are grateful to all our fans and stakeholders, especially Hammersmith & Fulham Council, for their patience and understanding in the matter.
"We will continue to consider our options for a new stadium, should economic conditions improve."
Chelsea Football Club Stamford Bridge Herzog & de Meuron