Stockport County has unveiled grand expansion plans that propose to nearly double the capacity of its home stadium.
The football club yesterday launched the next phase of consultation on plans for a phased expansion of its historic Edgeley Park stadium, which – if approved – would look to increase the capacity from 10,852 up to c.18,000.
Plans for the expansion and enhancement of the Stockport team’s home ground were initially announced back in 2022, when the Club firs introduced its “vision” for the stadium and surrounding area, and called on its loyal fans and the local community for their feedback.
The Club says the feedback it received during that first consultation was “instrumental” in shaping the “core objectives” for the expansion as this next phase launches.
An exciting series of new artist impression images and an accompanying video showcasing what Edgeley Park could look like following the refurbishment and expansion has also been released by the club, alongside the plans.
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Stockport County has today launched its next phase of consultation on plans for a phased expansion of Edgeley Park, which would increase capacity from 10,852 up to c.18,000.
The initial phase would include the eastern expansion and enhancement of the historic North Stand (Danny Bergara Stand) and East Stand (Railway End).
The expanded North Stand would provide around 600 additional seats, increasing its capacity to around 2,680, while the new East Stand would see its capacity increase from 1,366 up to around 4,500, and, as part of the plans, the North Stand’s historic brick frontage along Hardcastle Road would be retained and repaired.
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Subject to securing planning permission, the Club says it wants to begin work on the North Stand eastern extension in early 2025.
Then, as part of the Club’s longer-term plans, it’s envisaged that the South Stand (Together Stand) would be redeveloped to increase its capacity to around 5,500, while the final element would be a western extension to the North Stand to provide another 600 seats.
Stockport County has unveiled grand plans to expand Edgeley Park / Credit: Stockport County FC
But, other than the capacity increase, what else are the plans proposing then?
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Well, according to Stockport County, the plans propose to create a “true community stadium” with access to a wide range of spaces for the local community, create a better matchday experience for all – including more covered seating, with a “great view” of the pitch – and improve the stadium’s accessibility for those with disabilities and additional needs.
On top of this, the plans also look to offer “quick and easy” routes into and away from Edgeley Park for the benefit of fans, visitors, and local residents, and intend to make the stadium more “environmentally-friendly and sustainable”, where possible.
And, as Stockport County is already on its way to become locally known-for, the plans also intend to provide a greater range of high-quality food and drink options too.
If approved, it would increase the capacity of the team’s home ground from from 10,852 up to c.18,000.
The Club says the latest proposals and next round of consultation launched this week are based on a phased approach to “investing in improvements” to Edgeley Park in order to “ensure sustainable growth” for the future.
Stockport County says it’s intends to submit a hybrid planning application for the expansion in the next few months – which would follow on from this next round of the consultation process.
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Keen to have your say?
The second round of consultation on the plans for Edgeley Park is now underway, and will remain open until Wednesday 3 April 2024, so to get involved and give your feedback, you’ll just need to complete the feedback form on the Stockport County website here.
Or, if you’d prefer to do it in person, there’s several public drop-in sessions taking place at the stadium as part of the consultation on Tuesday 19 March at 3pm-7pm, Saturday 23 March at 2:30pm-5pm (matchday event), and Monday 25 March at 11am-3pm.
You can also see more information on the plans overall on the Stockport County website here.
Manchester City reveal world-first third kit… designed by AI
Daisy Jackson
Manchester City have just revealed the club’s third kit for the season, and it’s a world-first AI-designed kit.
The new Man City and Puma kit was revealed in full this morning after days of teasing on billboards across Manchester.
For the first time in professional football history, the kit is designed by a fan, using AI.
180,000 fans submitted designs through the Puma AI Creator, with the winning design now projected on some of the city’s biggest digital billboards – on Market Street, and at Printworks.
Created by lifelong Cityzen and stills photographer Elliott, the final design is inspired by Manchester City’s iconic 13/14 season away shirt.
Elliott’s creative interpretation was crowned in January 2025 after a global fan vote.
The digital billboards show each different stage of the AI design process, from prompt to finished design, with the tagline ‘designed by one of us, chosen by all of us’.
The AI Man City kit reveal
Eagle-eyed Man City fans may have noticed a cryptic ‘loading’ screen in town on Tuesday, with just a hint of the shirt visible.
Then on Wednesday, the screens displayed: “AI prompt accepted. Fan vote confirmed. Final Manchester City 26/27 Third Kit design processing.”
Then the full reveal has taken place today, Thursday 27 August, finally unveiling the full shirt with the words: “Designed by one of us. Chosen by all of us”.
Reacting to live images of the billboards, Elliott said: “Seeing my complete design revealed on billboards in the city centre this morning was unbelievable.
“City has been part of our family’s life for as long as I can remember, so this is as good as it gets for me.
“Creativity is naturally part of my everyday life as a photographer, but it was good to turn my hand to something else and see what could be created with the use of AI.
“The 13/14 away shirt was always my favourite, so it felt like the natural starting point for my prompt. From there, it was amazing to see the technology take that spark of an idea and turn it into something I could actually shape and refine.
“To know that a shirt I designed on my lunch break will now be worn by the players is something I still can’t quite get my head around!”
The 26/27 Manchester City Third Kit will be available at mancity.com/shop and Manchester City Official Stores, with 10% off for Members and Seasoncard holders (automatically applied when logged in with a Member account online).
Iconic Manchester United pub reopens after major £400k refurb
Daisy Jackson
An Old Trafford pub that’s long been a favourite with Manchester United fans has reopened its doors after a major refurbishment.
The Tollgate has had a £400,000 investment to become a ‘Grandstand’ sports pub, with gigantic HD screens throughout, tiered seating so you always have a great view of the action, and a menu of classic pub bites to pair with your pint.
There’ll be a big event atmosphere with all key sporting fixtures shown throughout the week, including football, rugby, cricket, tennis, F1, darts, horse racing – you name it, The Tollgate will show it.
The enormous outdoor area has also been refurbished, with new outdoor TV screens and Marston’s ‘Order & Pay’ app letting you order a round from your seat without missing a goal.
You’ll even find screens outside the loos…
Soon, local artist Pic One will be painting a mural onto the side of the pub, making it even more of a landmark boozer for Old Trafford.
The huge new main HD screenInside The Tollgate after its refurbThe Tollgate’s installed a TV box outside
Back inside, you’ll find a regulation dart board and a pool table, with new competition leagues and ‘free to play’ recreational sessions taking place throughout the week.
As well as a smart new interior packed with local sporting memorabilia, The Tollgate has installed market-leading technology, including one particularly gigantic HD screen, along with multiple other HD screens in every area, and a state-of-the-art sound system.
As you pass by, you might spot a huge TV box outside the pub, which has been installed to reflect how big the screen inside is.
The Tollgate is offering fans and customers a chance to shape its future – they’re calling out for locals to provide more photographs and merchandise to decorate the space, including mementos to celebrate the achievements of local sports stars and teams.
United memorabilia on the wallsInside the new-look The TollgateA cosy corner of The Tollgate
On the menus, you’ll find a new menu of perfect pub bites, including sharing combo boxes, chicken wings, nachos, and burgers.
There’ll be bottomless fries on offer for local sports teams who manage to get their hands on a ‘Black Card’, with even more rewards if they win their game.
And all draught beer (and there’s a lot of it) is now available in two-pint cups.
To celebrate its launch, the pub invited a fellow Manchester United icon Ying-Hoi Soo (affectionately known to Reds as ‘Mr Miyagi’) to pull the first pint and officially mark the pub’s opening.
Ying is recognised for his selfless charity work, and The Tollgate plans to work closely with Ying in the future to support this.
The new Grandstand pub concept has been introduced after research revealed that 86% of sports fans prefer to watch games at sports pubs, thanks to their livelier atmosphere, better screens, and community feel.
A huge two-pint beerThere’s a pool tableAnd dart board insideThe food offering
Marston’s picked Tollgate as one of the pubs to receive the Grandstand makeover due to its involvement with local sports teams, community groups and charities.
Pub Partner, Michael McLoughlin, said: “We’ve loved welcoming the community back with open arms!
“The response has been fantastic to our food and drink offers, as well as the new technology to watch all kinds of sports – we’re thankful that our pub is always full of good vibes, and real community spirit.”
Emily Sergeant -
14th March 2024 
