How do you put a value on a stadium?

The FIFA World Cup has reminded us why stadiums remain some of the most iconic structures in the built world. When filled to capacity and at the centre of global attention, they are the very definition of trophy assets.

However, these venues present an interesting challenge for professional valuers. They clearly hold strong economic and cultural value, but no two venues are the same, disposals are rare and, if you visit out of season, they can look far less exciting as an investment prospect. With transactional evidence limited and performance often influenced by factors beyond the boundary, stadiums present a valuation challenge unlike almost any other asset class.

As stadiums are typically owner occupied and unlikely to be sold to third-party investors, the crystallisation of value is rarely realised, so valuations are more commonly required for loan security, financial reporting or planning viability, rather than disposal.

Valuations vary significantly based on the stadium’s capacity, the specific purpose of the valuation and its existing use value – but valuers also need to look at regeneration potential. Traditional valuation approaches may capture the building, but they do not capture what the building does.

Things get interesting when stadiums become powerful catalysts for wider economic activity and investment. Capital is flowing into sports-led development globally and across the UK, not because stadiums are attractive assets in isolation, but because they are durable anchors for wider, investable places. Few asset classes combine global visibility with local worth in the same way. However, that value only becomes investable if it can be captured.

There is now a strong argument that stadiums are starting to create more value than they capture. While a stadium itself is relatively illiquid, we have seen them generate substantial value and uplift in surrounding residential, retail, leisure, hotel and commercial development. Examples such as Wembley Park and Everton’s Bramley-Moore Dock illustrate how stadiums are increasingly acting as anchors for broader regeneration and placemaking strategies, rather than standalone assets.

Manchester United’s latest plans (pictured) are a prominent example. The club is not simply considering stadium redevelopment, but it is positioning Old (“New”) Trafford within a broader regeneration vision for the surrounding area to create a globally competitive destination that extends beyond the stands.

Wrexham FC presents an interesting case study, not because the stadium itself has necessarily become significantly more valuable, but because the success of the club following its purchase by two Hollywood actors has driven tourism, investment, place branding and wider confidence in the area. In valuation terms, the “Ryan Reynolds effect” is real and quantifiable, with both residential values and rental demand in the town outpacing the national average for Wales.

These examples demonstrate that there is no single stadium valuation model. At the Etihad Campus, value arises from the concentration of sporting, educational and commercial activity. Brentford demonstrates a development-led model, where stadium economics are intrinsically linked to surrounding real estate, while Wrexham illustrates the economic impact of attention, place branding and investor confidence. At Wembley, value is primarily captured through long-term ownership of the surrounding estate and the income generated by a wider mixed-use destination.

Yet from a valuation perspective, it would be wrong to simply capitalise surrounding uplift into the stadium’s value if its owner does not control the mechanisms through which that uplift is realised. Defining the valuation boundary therefore becomes a critical judgement.

Across all of these models, one principle holds: value follows control. Control of land influences who captures uplift, control of planning shapes development potential, control of programming drives revenue diversification, and control of infrastructure determines capacity for growth.

Value does not only flow outwards from stadiums. Increasingly, surrounding development is helping to fund the stadium itself, highlighting the trade-offs between private value creation, public benefit, and planning priorities. Brentford FC’s £71m Gtech Community Stadium provides a good example. The football club contributed the land, while development partner Willmott Dixon constructed the stadium and funded it through the delivery of more than 900 homes across the Lionel Road South site and Brentford’s former Griffin Park ground.

Beyond matchdays, Brentford has sought to diversify revenues through conferences, events and proposals for live concerts, demonstrating how stadiums are increasingly expected to generate income year-round. The ability to support these additional uses is itself a source of value, reducing dependence on sporting performance and creating a broader range of income streams.

Ultimately, this is why stadium valuation cannot be confined to the asset itself. As valuers, we need to recognise that stadiums exist within wider ecosystems of value creation. Whether through surrounding development, diversified revenue streams or place-making effects, the critical question is not simply what a stadium is worth, but the mechanisms through which value is created and captured.