Newcastle United have given Uefa cast-iron assurances that St James’ Park will still be standing in its current location in the summer of 2028 – the latest signal that a solution to their stadium dilemma remains years away.
After initial “hesitancy” to commit to hosting games for Euro 2028 because of the uncertainty around the future of St James’ Park, the club agreed to become part of the bid and have been awarded four group games and a round-of-16 match that could potentially feature England.
But it has implications for the stadium, effectively assuring that there will be no “spades in the ground” at St James’ Park before the 2028-29 season at the earliest.
It has been a conscious decision by Newcastle’s hierarchy to commit to the tournament and is in stark contrast to Manchester United, who were included in the preliminary bidding document submitting to Uefa two years ago but withdrew after beginning a review of Old Trafford’s long-term future.
Newcastle are engaged in a similar process at St James’ Park and for most of this year the direction of travel has appeared to be towards a new-build stadium, to be constructed at nearby Leazes Park.
Internal presentations shown to some staff featured video representations of what that might look like, although the club have always insisted no final decision has been made.
The call remains in the hands of majority owners the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and – despite a promise to communicate in “early 2025” – there will now be no update on the stadium’s future before 2026.
One of the solutions on the table last season was that construction on the new stadium could begin while Newcastle continued to play at St James’ Park and, in theory, that is possible while Euro 2028 takes place.
But sources believe that is “unlikely” and a more realistic prospect is that the status quo remains until the second half of 2028 at the earliest – emphasising just what a long-term project it is.
“Uefa want lots of reassurances and Newcastle United have made some reassurances about what will happen and what won’t happen and now we’re two-and-a-half years out, whatever happens they will still have a stadium at St James’ Park,” Jim Mawdsley, Newcastle City Council’s principal events and culture advisor, told The i Paper.
Mawdsley said he has been working closely with the club for three years to bring games to the city.
“At the start to be honest with you, given what was going on with the ground and everything, and we still don’t know where they’re going with that, they were a bit hesitant at first,” he added.
“But we persuaded them it will be great for the city and for the club and Newcastle United are totally on board, totally committed. We’re preparing the city in partnership.”
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The tournament will bring huge benefits to the city, with organisers “super confident” every one of the five games being hosted at St James’ Park will sell out.
They are also planning a 20,000-capacity fan zone and are scouring “iconic locations” to build it in.
There is also an aspiration to bring the final of one of Uefa’s tournaments to the city.
“It is something we’d like to talk about in the future,” Mawdsley said.
“Maybe the next step is a Conference League or Europa League final, that would be amazing. Even if that is into the 2030s, whatever the timeframe is, my job is to make sure the city is presented in the best possible way.
“Euro 2028 gives us that opportunity. One of my challenges in this role is to make sure everyone realises how big it is going to be.”
