The 22 stadiums included in UK’s joint bid for 2035 Women’s World Cup | OneFootball

New stadiums proposed by Manchester United and Birmingham City have been included in the UK’s joint bid for the 2035 Women’s World Cup.

The bid includes 22 stadiums in England, three in Wales, two in Scotland and one in Northern Ireland, in what would be the first World Cup held in the UK since the 1966 men’s World Cup.

Manchester United have outlined plans for a proposed 100,000-seat stadium, with the planned redevelopment included in the bid - alongside Old Trafford in its current form.

Old Trafford is also included because there is insufficient information about the proposed new Manchester United stadium, announced in March this year, for a Fifa assessment.

But the intention is for the new stadium to be considered by Fifa once plans are confirmed by Manchester United, as a task force undergoes a huge regeneration project in Trafford.

Championship club Birmingham City recently unveiled a design for a new 62,000-seat stadium, in a project valued at £2.5bn, with completion targeted for 2030.

The 2035 bid also includes room for a new Chelsea stadium, with the club in the process of consulting a range of options - including leaving Stamford Bridge and building a new ground.

The current Stamford Bridge does not meet Fifa’s requirements and will not be put forward unless it undergoes a major redevelopment, which remains an option. Chelsea have also explored moving to Earls Court.

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Chelsea are exploring their options, including rebuilding Stamford Bridge (Bradley Collyer/PA Wire)

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Birmingham City have announced ambitious plans for a new ground (Jacob King/PA Wire)

The home nations are bidding unopposed for the 2035 Women’s World Cup, with the 48-team tournament set be the largest single-sport event ever staged in the UK.

A 48-team tournament would involve 104 matches in 39 days across the UK. Stadiums must have a minimum of 20,000 seats, with several grounds on the proposed list, including Belfast’s Windsor Park and Wrexham’s SToK Cae Ras, undergoing redevelopment.

London has five stadiums included in the bid, including Wembley, which hosted the 2022 Euros final, Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Crystal Palace’s Selhurst Park and Chelsea’s ground.

The north east of England has two stadiums included, with Sunderland’s Stadium of Light and Newcastle’s St James’ Park. The Lionesses have played games at both grounds since 2023.

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Edinburgh’s Easter Road will join Hampden Park as two of Scotland’s stadiums (Getty Images)

Apart from Birmingham’s new stadium, Bristol’s Ashton Gate is the only non-Premier League stadium included in England. There is no place for MK Dons’ Stadium MK or Sheffield’s Bramall Lane, which both hosted Euro 2022 semi-finals.

Everton’s new Hill Dickinson Stadium is preferred over Anfield, while Brighton’s Amex Stadium, Villa Park, Elland Road and the City Ground have been nominated.

In Scotland, the national stadium at Hampden is joined by Hibernian’s Easter Road in Edinburgh. Wales has three stadiums put forward - and two in Cardiff, the Cardiff City Stadium and Principality Stadium.

It was hoped that the Northern Ireland would host five games as part of the UK’s joint-bid to host the men’s 2028 Euros, but the nation lost it hosting rights due to the rising costs of the Casement Park redevelopment, with Windsor Park considered to be too small.

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Windsor Park has been put forward for Northern Ireland (Getty Images)

“Hosting the Fifa Women’s World Cup would be a huge privilege for our four home nations,” a joint statement from the England FA, Scottish FA, Irish FA and Welsh FA said.

“We are proud of the growth that we’ve driven in recent years across the women’s and girls’ game, but there is still so much more growth to come, and this event will play a key role in helping us deliver that.

“Working together with Fifa, a Women’s World Cup in the UK has the power to turbo charge the women’s and girls’ game both in the UK and globally.

“Our bid also demonstrates our commitment to leaving a lasting legacy, in the run up to 2035, and the years afterwards. Together, we want to welcome the world to the UK to celebrate and enjoy an unforgettable tournament.”