Q&A

When was it rebuilt?

THE famous old stadium, which was built in 1923 and included the iconic ‘Twin Towers’, was demolished in 2003.

The new England national stadium, with its 436ft high arch, was built on the site, opening four years later.

Where did all the money come from?

The Football Association secured huge loans for the project, but much of the money came from the taxpayer and National Lottery.

Sport England, a quango which hands out Lottery cash, gave £120million towards the project.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport contributed a further £20million from central government funds and the

London Development Agency contributed another £21million.

The LDA, a quango which supported projects designed to foster economic development, was shut down in 2012 and merged into the Greater London Authority. This £161million was given in the form of grants – not loans.

In total, the stadium cost almost £800million to build. At the start of this year, £142million of debt still remained to be paid. In January, the FA said it would have paid that back by the end of 2024. Will the public get their money back?

A number of MPs have demanded that, if the stadium is sold, public money should be ploughed back.

Sport England demanded the owner pay towards grassroots football. In a statement, the body said: ‘Sport England invested £120million of National Lottery money into the development. We look forward to hearing more detail about how such a deal would work and whether it would benefit grassroots sport.’

The FA has not said anything officially, but it is believed millions would be ploughed into local football if a deal is agreed. Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, has instructed lawyers to see whether the capital could get back the £21million it gave to the project via the LDA.