FA prepared to sell Wembley stadium in £800m deal | OneFootball

The Football Association are reportedly ready to sell Wembley Stadium in an stunning £800m deal.

Billionaire American Shahid Khan – owner of Championship side Fulham and NFL franchise Jacksonville Jaguars – has tabled an offer believed to be over £500m up front for the base of English football in a deal that could see the national teams play elsewhere.

The England team would still stage the majority of their home games at the stadium but a large portion of their annual schedule would be moved under the proposals.

It’s believed that the FA will use the extra revenue to pay for hundreds of new 3G and 4G pitches across the country, as well as other new facilities.

An FA spokesman said: “We can confirm the FA Board has received an offer for Wembley.”

Florida-based Khan, who is worth over £5.2bn, has been vocal in his desire for a UK-based NFL team and this move could kickstart a franchise making the move in future.

Mark Waller, the NFL executive vice-president of events and international, has since confirmed Khan is behind the bid and says it is a “powerful sign” of a commitment to growing the sport in the UK.

“We are very happy for Shad Khan and the Jacksonville Jaguars,” he said in a statement. “The potential purchase of Wembley Stadium is a further powerful sign of their commitment to the UK and their vision to help us grow the sport.

“Having stadium options in London has always been critical to the NFL and, in tandem with our 10-year partnership with Tottenham Hotspur, this new relationship would allow for even greater flexibility in scheduling future NFL games in London.”

The Jaguars have played one regular season game in London every year since 2013 but should this deal be closed they would take up residency at the stadium between September and January.

During that time period the England football team would have to move home matches elsewhere in a move that is likely to draw criticism from traditionalists.

The move will be considered a huge blow to Tottenham’s hopes of housing a permanent NFL team in their multimillion new home in the future while Chelsea’s plans to use Wembley as a temporary home while Stamford Bridge is renovated could also be affected.

There is no suggestion that Fulham would use the stadium and were last month given planning permission to redevelop Craven Cottage.

The deal will be subject to due diligence and will likely take months to complete.

The move is set to draw a line under the FA’s day-to-day involvement in the stadium having paid all of £757m to build it following the demolition of the old Wembley back in 2000.