PSG favoring expanding Parc des Princes capacity over building new stadium

Future plans for PSG's stadium are still up in the air, with the possibility of increasing the capacity of the Parc des Princes at the forefront of discussions among club leaders over other alternative options, reports Daniel Riolo.

The journalist shed light on the ongoing debate between members of the PSG staff, ruling out one option that has sparked division among supporters while favoring staying at the Parc.

The question of which stadium should be PSG's home continues to divide fans., mostly because PSG has only known one home throughout their history: Paris' Parc des Princes.

While the Parc des Princes continues to witness the writing of PSG history on its books weekly, the notion of providing PSG with a larger stadium has remained a constant consideration for club leaders and one of their main goals since they arrived in Paris at the start of last decade.

Despite the recent construction of an expansive training camp at Poisy, the current stadium's limitations in terms of capacity and renovation potential have always been apparent to the board.

The existing 48,583 seats are deemed insufficient to capture the atmosphere on match nights, mostly in European competitions, which has therefore prompted PSG to explore larger options, even if that means moving away from the Parc.

Three possibilities emerged of late for PSG leaders: purchasing the Parc des Prince to expand it as they please, acquiring the Stade de France, or simply building a new stadium.

Contrary to earlier beliefs, PSG has ruled out the possibility of moving to the Stade de France. Daniel Riolo, speaking on RMC Sport's After Foot, revealed that discussions on this option "have ceased due to economic reasons."

The high cost of purchasing the Stade de France, estimated at €600m, coupled with additional expenses to adapt it to the needs demanded by European and domestic competitive football games, has made the Stade de France an impractical choice.

Despite this setback, PSG remains committed to expanding the Parc des Princes, although in order to do that the club will have to convince the mayor of Paris to sell the stadium to PSG and QSI (read: Qatar) by extension.

Riolo asserted, "Discussions will resume for the work at the Parc des Princes, for transformations that would increase capacity."

The club is also exploring the option of acquiring a plot of land adjacent to the stadium for additional expansions that wouldn't necessarily require the city of Paris to surrender and sell the venue to PSG's owners.

Alternatively, the idea of purchasing a racecourse in Auteuil or St-Cloud to build a new stadium is on the table, pending discussions with the Paris town hall and landowners, although the expenses would be quite higher than just renewing and expanding the Parc.