Newcastle United are edging closer to an eagerly-awaited decision on the future of St James' Park, with supporters still very much torn as to whether the club should opt to stay or go.

The Telegraph reported on Monday that Newcastle are leaning towards building a brand new stadium next to their current location, with the designs showing some of the new ground overlapping with the land St James' Park currently sits on. However, expanding the 52,000-seater remains an option too.

Chronicle Live understands no final decision has been taken yet, with Newcastle sticking to the timeline set out late last year. The North East outfit have been expected to enter a 'decision stage' in the current quarter and could potentially deliver an official update to supporters at a Fan Advisory Board (FAB) meeting in the coming weeks.

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The cost of both potential projects will undoubtedly have a big impact on the final plans, with reports suggesting a new 70,000-capacity stadium could cost around £1.2billion to build. These eye-watering figures could end up costing double what it would take to add an extra 10,000 seats inside the club's current venue.

In recent years, these sorts of projects have often spiralled well beyond the initial costings. For example, Everton's new Bramley-Moore Dock Stadium was initially costed at £500m but spiralled to more than £800m. Tottenham Hotspur went one better when leaving White Hart Lane, paying around £1.2billion for a stadium that was expected to come in at around £250m.

In terms of renovation costs, Liverpool's Anfield Road Stand extension - which was completed in 2024 and saw the Reds expand their stadium to 61,000 - set the Merseyside outfit back £100m, with an extra £20m in additional costs related to the initial contractors going into administration were covered by insurance.

Manchester City are also in the process of adding to their capacity at the Etihad, with new commercial + entertainment buildings and a fan zone being constructed next to the North Stand too, and is estimated at £300m. The Telegraph report a St James' Park extension could end up costing between £600-£800m.

Newcastle know the emotional ties to St James' Park will prove hard to overcome but the financial benefits of a new, state-of-the-art ground could revolutionise the club's finances for years to come. Financial accounts from 2023/24 show Tottenham are now raking in an average of £4.8m in revenue every home game, with their new stadium doubling up as a multi-purpose arena capable of hosting concerts, sporting events and more.

“The first choice is, if we stayed at St James’, we have the 52,000 seats already,” Newcastle's Chief Operating Officer, Brad Miller, said last year. “It comes with significantly more money if we transform it and it will look amazing. That’s option one.

“Option two is if we were to move away, and not too far away as we aren’t going to stretch the elastic band to the point of breaking. The second option, we are looking at it seriously as it does have the potential to earn more than twice as much in terms of revenue, compared to a transformation of St James’ Park. And more seats, a lot more seats potentially.”