Owner Roman Abramovich’s £500m rebuild of Stamford Bridge, designed by the team who created Beijing 2008’s lauded Birds’ Nest, has been given unanimous backing by councillors in Hammersmith and Fulham.
It means the current 41,600 capacity ground will be demolished to be replaced with a state-of-the-art venue, subject to final approval by London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
Blues chairman Bruce Buck was among those to welcome the decision, which the club described as a “significant step” in its history.
It means Chelsea will be able to close the capacity gap with Arsenal, whose 60,000-seater Emirates brought in £101million matchday revenue last year compared to Chelsea’s £71million.
