- October 11, 2023
- Posted by: SportsV
- Categories: Event News, Featured Articles, Features, Home News, Industry News, News, Press Releases
Oxford United Football Club has published further details of the plans for their potential new home in Kidlington. The club has published seven new images of the proposal and a virtual fly through.
Oxford United has a vision to create a sustainable sports, entertainment and lifestyle landmark in Oxfordshire which is locally loved and internationally recognised. After an extensive site search, the Triangle in Kidlington has been identified as the only viable and potentially available site to create a best-in-class facility as the new home of Oxford United Football Club.
The club’s new home will set the benchmark for community benefit, commercial innovation, and environmental performance, and put the visitor experience at its heart. This will take Oxford United Football Club into the 21st century and enable the continued success of both the men’s and women’s teams, as well as its vitally important community outreach and charitable work.
The club’s current agreement to play at the Kassam Stadium comes to an end in 2026 and so they have to find a new home. This has led to plans for a 16,000-capacity stadium and complex within a single building. This will include a 180-bed hotel, restaurant, conference centre, health & wellbeing space and a community plaza.
The northern part of the building, next to the new plaza, will have a range of retail, restaurant and community spaces, including the Club Shop, Sports Bar / Café and Restaurant.
Oxford United, AFL Architects, Mott MacDonald and Ridge were all in attendance at the ALSD International 2023 Conference & Exhibition hosted at The Etihad Stadium this week.
The building will be surrounded and complemented by new landscaping and community-focused open public green spaces which will enhance the biodiversity of the site by more than 10%.
The stadium will be better connected to public transport and create new connections for the wider community, with a new east to west pedestrian and cycle route, improved footway and cycleway links to Oxford Parkway station and the Water Eaton Park and Ride site as well as enhanced pedestrian facilities along Oxford Road.
The stadium has been designed for all, reducing barriers to participation and involvement. The stadium designs feature sensory rooms and a dedicated accessible concourse with elevated views of the field of play, demonstrating the club’s commitment in ensuring everyone is able to comfortably visit Oxford’s new home for football.
Oxford United Football Club is committed to women’s league and cup fixtures being played at the stadium and wants everyone to have equal access to the new facilities.
On the evening of the 9th October, the club is held a special preview exhibition of the revealed designs and set out a lot more detail about the project. This is being followed by twelve days of exhibitions, where the public can see the proposals and leave their feedback.
A copy of the exhibition boards and an option to complete the feedback form electronically will also be available on the stadium website at www.oufcstadium.co.uk
The Exhibition follows the decision by Oxfordshire County Council’s Cabinet last month to give in principle consent to lease the triangle site in Kidlington as the new home for Oxford United. Details can be found on Oxfordshire County Council’s dedicated website here: https://www.oxfordshire.
The club is keen to engage on the plans and has senior staff and members of the project team available for interviews and to answer questions at short notice.
The club has also published seven new high-resolution images and a fly-through of the project, all of which were shown at the 2023 ALSD International Conference & Exhibition this week.
Oxford United Football Club Chief Executive Tim Williams said:
With our right to use the Kassam Stadium coming to an end in 2026 and no option to renew the lease, we must find a new home. The club is committed to developing a proposal which is highly sustainable and community focused whilst providing a state-of-the-art destination for all. The further detail we have released today shows how seriously we take these principles, and I am delighted to share the first glimpse of our stadium with the whole of Oxfordshire.
I hope everyone from Kidlington, the surrounding areas and across the county will come to the exhibition and take a look at the plans.
We want to hear all your feedback.
Sports Venue Business organises and delivers ALSD International – the leading event and 365 community for the Premium Seat & Hospitality sector – on behalf of the Association of Luxury Suite Directors (ALSD).
