Leeds United handed major boost in plans to expand Elland Road to 53,000 seats | OneFootball

The Whites announced plans to expand their home last year.

Leeds United have received a major boost in their hopes to expand Elland Road's capacity from its current limit of 37,645 to 53,000.

The club announced in September that they were looking to develop the place that has been their home since 1919. Leeds have a 26,000-person-long waiting list for season tickets, and they have sold out every game for the past six seasons, as per their original statement on the redevelopment. Now that they have been promoted to the Premier League, that list could get longer.

Any plans like this need support from the local authorities. Councillor James Lewis, who is the leader of Leeds City Council, backed the plans at the time, and the council have now handed more good news to the club following a recent meeting.

Leeds United receive major Elland Road expansion boost

The local council has unanimously voted in favour of the proposed expansion of the stadium, less than 48 hours after the club sealed their promotion to the English top flight.

The timing of this breakthrough should come as no surprise, as it was previously reported by Graham Smyth that the development of the stadium would only be likely once Leeds got back to the Premier League.

A statement on X from the authority said: "Leeds City Council's executive board has just unanimously agreed the ambitious regeneration vision to make newly-promoted @LUFC's Elland Road stadium one of the biggest in the country."

What they have agreed to is to sell the land that they own around Elland Road to the club so that they can expand the stadium. They have also agreed to "negotiate a deal" with the club's development partner, Lowy Family Group, as per Beren Cross.

The orange section of the image below is the land that the council are willing to sell to Leeds.

This second image displays the bits of land that the council are willing to negotiate with Lowy Family Group over.

The club's owners, 49ers Enterprises, formerly committed £10 million to get the project to the planning permission stage, as per the Yorkshire Evening Post. Paraag Marathe stated just over a month ago that new information would come soon. This can certainly be considered a step in the right direction.

Elland Road development will be a monumental shift for Leeds

The plan for the home of the Whites is to not just expand the capacity, but also to upgrade the standard of it so that it becomes a UEFA Category 4 ground, AKA on the same level as some of the European elite.

The club's priority first and foremost will be staying in the first division. Maintaining that status will be key to financing these plans, but that won't be an easy task, so much so that Leeds are reportedly considering changing managers because of Daniel Farke's poor record in the Premier League.

Once they do eventually get all of this work done, it will be a big step forward for the club. Their revenues will go up, which should enhance the development of the squad, which should help them to climb the ladder even more, and so on. If they can get themselves in that cycle, there will be no looking back for this club.