Emirates Stadium upgrade imagined by AI as stunning new pictures of Arsenal ground emerge

Arsenal fans have been given a glimpse into the future by new AI generated pictures depicting what the new Emirates Stadium could look like.

On October 26, 2006, the late Prince Philip officially opened the home of the Gunners after 93 years of the club playing at Highbury. Fast forward nearly 20 years, and plans to expand the Emirates Stadium from 60,700 to over 70,000 have been unveiled.

At present, Tottenham Hotspur boast the biggest stadium in London with space for 62,850 spectators, more than West Ham United's controversial London Stadium which fits 62,500 people for football matches and significantly more than Chelsea's home Stamford Bridge, which only fits just over 40,000 fans. As Arsenal fans ponder what their new home could look like in the future, they can feast their eyes on AI's vision for the stadium.

Pictures generated by OLBG present a new Emirates Stadium which looks close to identical to the original one. However, the spacing between the tiers has been widened significantly to make more room for nearly 10,000 extra spectators.

The outside has also been upgraded with the iconic Arsenal cannon being illuminated on a glass exterior in bright neon lights. There is also another entrance into the stadium beneath the existing grounds, providing a new route for home fans to stroll into the stadium and find their seats.

Of course, these images are AI generated and are not final designs of what the stadium could look like. They may be enough to make Arsenal fans excited about the prospect of a bigger and more modern home stadium.

Work on upgrading and updating the Emirates Stadium is expected to take a long period of time. According to the Telegraph, the Gunners could follow Tottenham by playing their home matches at Wembley Stadium while construction takes place.

It's understood Spurs paid around £15million to play home matches at the national stadium for the best part of two years. However, it would require an agreement with the FA, particularly with the home of English football also being used for England men's and Lionesses matches, pop concerts, NFL matches, EFL play-offs and other major fixtures like the League Cup and FA Cup finals.

News of the renovation would have been music to many supporters' ears, particularly those on a season ticket waiting list, which is understood to stand in excess of 100,000 people. While there will be no need to construct a new stadium from scratch, the project is expected to cost in the hundreds of millions.

Arsenal did not move into the stadium until 2006, but they first got planning permission for the construction of the Emirates Stadium in May 2002. They were able to play at Highbury while the ground was constructed.

Further reports state that the Gunners have been taking inspiration from Real Madrid's stunning renovation of the Bernabeu, which has seen revenues increase as a result of their new 83,000 capacity.

Barcelona are also currently renovating the Nou Camp, which could see their capacity expand to 105,000 people. Any expansion of the Emirates Stadium will take many years, with any plan described as being a "complex" task.

Close to every part of the stadium will likely require additions, with many sections needing gradient and seating plan changes to increase the capacity.

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