Former Premier League club forced to abandon 40,000 expansion plans following relegation

The Valley remains the largest football stadium in south London, but there were plans for it to become much bigger.

CharltonManchester United's stadium in the capital has a capacity of 27,111, outstripping local rivals Crystal Palace and Millwall, who are in the top 10. Premier League and Championship respectively.

Selhurst Park has a capacity of 25,486, while The Den has a capacity of 20,146.

Not long ago, the Addicks were a model club in football. At the turn of the millennium, they enjoyed seven consecutive seasons in the Premier League.

During this period, refurbishment work was carried out at The Valley to expand its capacity to over 27,000 people.

However, the biggest names and the biggest clubs regularly flocked to the stadium, and tickets were sold out match after match.

As an established Premier League team, plans were explored to further increase the ground's capacity.

In 2005, permission was granted to expand the stadium to 31,000 by extending the East Stand. A year later, the club announced hopes of increasing that capacity to around 40,000 by refurbishing the Jimmy Seed Stand.

However, the club were relegated from the Premier League in 2007 and those plans, understandably, never came to fruition.

Charlton are currently in their ninth season out of ten in League One, with an average attendance last season of around 13,000.

The Valley has come a long way since its former appearance in the late 1980s.

Financial problems forced them to leave the site in 1985 and it remained abandoned for many years.

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Charlton had to share a ground with Palace and West Ham until returning to The Valley in 1992 after a fierce fan-led battle.

Concerns have been raised over the future of the club's stadium, as former owner Roland Duchatelet still owns the land and training ground.

The Addicks lease these assets from Duchatelet and signed a 15-year lease in 2021.

The club is a long way from the days when it could potentially have a stadium with a capacity of 40,000 spectators.

Charlton co-owner Charlie Methven recently told the Business of Sport podcast: “I think having a long-term resolution on the ownership of the stadium is really important.

“It is a question of commercial negotiation with the current owner. Anything is possible, but it is a commercial negotiation that is confidential.

“If there is one thing that keeps me up at night, it is the long-term permanence in The Valley. One of the great historic stadiums, one of the last that still remains as they were.”

Charlton's past could serve as a warning to Evertonwho are in the process of building a new stadium.

The Toffees are expected to leave Goodison Park and move to a new 52,000-capacity venue at Bramley-Moore Dock before the 2025/26 season begins.

However, after just three games, Sean Dyche's side already look to be fighting relegation this season, having lost every game so far.

The new stadium is estimated to cost around £760m, largely paid for in loans from owner Farhad Moshiri, so the implications of relegation could be huge for the ever-present Premier League club.