Leicester City’s plans to increase capacity at the King Power Stadium have been held up over the latest negotiations with the city council.
The club and council are still to agree how much the club should contribute to the local community as part of the planning terms.
The arrangement – a Section 106 agreement – could include City pumping money into affordable housing, public transport and putting a significant amount into protecting the nearby Raw Dykes Roman site.
The council gave planning permission last year – subject to the 106 agreement – for City to rebuild the east stand and take the ground’s capacity from just over 32,000 to more than 40,000.
The King Power Group also want to add a 220-room hotel, a 20-storey residential block, a 6,000-capacity indoor entertainment area, as well as a new flagship club shop.
It is not known how the delays, building cost inflation and rising interest rates – or even the possibility that City could be relegated to the Championship next season unless they start picking up points again – will impact on the scale of the plans.
Original hopes for a summer 2024 completion date for the first stage of the plans – the work on the east stand – are now out of the question.
News of the delays comes as the club revealed its figures for the 2021-22 season which showed a loss for the year of £92.5 million – up from a £33.1 million loss the year before. The club had revenues of £214.6 million last season.
At the end of the season, its combined debts meant the club was more than £300 million in the red. However that has since been reduced after the Thai owner Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha committed to its financial security by turning £194 million of loans owed to him into equity in the club.
Leicester City has spent years working on a masterplan to extend capacity at the King Power Stadium by 8,300 seats.
Assuming nothing gets in the way of the stadium investment, the changes could include a 15-storey hotel and business centre, as well as an indoor arena for conferences, concerts, indoor sporting events and live performances.
The arena could be linked to the new east stand and hotel via a footbridge. The Foxes’ Thai owners also want to put in new club and commercial office space, multi-storey parking and a 234 apartment, 20-storey residential tower block.
Planning documents say the number of people employed on the site would rise from 1,070 to 2,745.
The club said the chairman and parent company King Power International continued to provide a “deeply secure footing” to pursue its long-term ambitions.
City chief executive Susan Whelan said: “Under 12 years of King Power ownership, we have consistently sought to invest in the club’s future and to build from established positions of strength.
“King Power’s unwavering support of the club provides a secure position from which to capitalise on our opportunities.
“However, in order to remain compliant with the game’s regulations both domestically and in Europe – where we aim to compete regularly – our ongoing investment strategy must continue to reflect our underlying revenue progression.
“Our long-term ambition is to achieve this through on-pitch success, the commercial growth that comes with it and through the expansion of our stadium and the development of the associated masterplan.
“In the shorter term, as we look to continue to compete with more established opponents, profits from player trading and continued successful recruitment will continue to feature prominently in our strategy.
“This approach has served us well in the past, bolstering our capability to keep investing in the growth of the club and forming a cornerstone of the most successful era in Leicester City’s history.
“Everyone at the club remains committed to the ongoing and responsible establishment of Leicester City as a consistently competitive force in the game’s leading competitions and a powerful force for good in our communities.”
Leicester City’s gate receipts last season were £21 million, compared to £500,000 in the Covid-hit previous season. But the club had a £6 million cut in Premier League revenue for 2021/22 compared with the previous year due to the team’s lower finishing position.
Player trading profits for the year were also down on the near £43 million brought in the previous season, at £9.2 million, as the club held on to key players such as James Maddison and Youri Tielemans.
