Newcastle United may need to ground share depending on what happens to St James’ Park.
Fans are eagerly anticipating what decision the club will make regarding the future of St James’ Park. Newcastle executives have deliberated long and hard behind the scenes about what they wish to do and a decision on St James’ Park’s future is expected in March.
The decision will come after it was revealed that Newcastle hired the company that built Real Madrid’s training complex to do work on theirs. No decision on where the new training ground will be located has been made yet – completion still looks to be several years away.
Whatever decision is made regarding stadium plans, Newcastle may have to relocate from St James’ Park while work is done.
In a bizarre twist, Sunderland’s Stadium of Light was an option Newcastle considered. The 49,000-capacity ground would have been more than enough to house Newcastle’s season ticket holders with space for extra fans and away supporters. However, Sunderland bosses confirmed they will not ground share with Newcastle.
With the decision leaving Newcastle bosses scratching their heads over alternatives, here are three potential stadiums Newcastle could ground share with.
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Interior view of the stadium prior to the Sky Bet Championship match between Middlesbrough and Swansea City at the Riverside Stadium on September 2…
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Riverside Stadium – Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium is one of the closer options available to Newcastle. It would take Toon fans around an hour to drive there or two hours if they took the train.
Newcastle fans have not visited the ground for over a decade but could make it their temporary home if need be. The ground has a capacity of 34,742 which should be enough to house Newcastle’s 31,000 season ticket holders (The Mag).
A positive for Newcastle is that The Riverside is a UEFA Category Four stadium, meaning the Magpies could play European football there should they qualify.
The only worry for Newcastle bosses is that Middlesbrough have the same feeling as Sunderland regarding a ground share with their local rivals.
A general view of Murrayfield Stadium is pictured ahead of the 2015 Rugby World Cup warm up match between Scotland and Italy at Murrayfield in Edin…
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Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium – Edinburgh
Although it is considered more of a rugby stadium, Murrayfield could be considered another option for Newcastle to ground share while work on Tyneside commences.
Understandably, it would be much more difficult for fans to travel up to Scotland on a potentially weekly basis to watch Newcastle play. However, its 67,144 capacity would give Newcastle fans a glimpse of what a new stadium could look like in Newcastle.
Murrayfield has been used as a venue for football on numerous occasions. Most recently when Manchester United played Rangers in a pre-season friendly in July 2024 in front of 56,574 people.
Like the Riverside, Murrayfield also has a UEFA Category Four status so Newcastle could enjoy European nights in Scotland’s capital.
A general view of the Gateshead International Stadium prior to the National League Cup Group C match between Gateshead and Newcastle United U21 at …
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Gateshead International Stadium – Gateshead
Probably the most fan-friendly option – the Gateshead International Stadium is just four Tyne and Wear Metro stops away from St James’ Park. It would only take fans around 25 minutes to travel to the ground from the city centre.
Newcastle fans will be very familiar with the ground. Eddie Howe’s side played a pre-season friendly at against Gateshead before the start of the 2023/24 season where the Magpies ran out 3-2 winners.
Newcastle’s youth team are also frequent visitors to the ground. They played two of their UEFA Youth League games against Borussia Dortmund and PSG.
With an 11,800 capacity, it would be difficult to see the club moving there. However, there is potential for expansion at the ground due to the large running track between the pitch and the stands.
Should Newcastle qualify for Europe. They would need to find somewhere else to play their games as the ground is not UEFA-compliant.