Wembley project delayed by another month

Construction of Wembley stadium has been delayed for another month after Australian builder Multiplex Group said it expects to…

Construction of Wembley stadium has been delayed for another month after Australian builder Multiplex Group said it expects to substantially complete work by the end of June rather than May.

The Football Association has already been forced to transfer May's FA Cup Final to the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff due to construction delays at Wembley, which was demolished in 2000.

Multiplex, which incurred a £103 million (€148 million) charge after tax in February to account for any new cost increases on Wembley, said the latest delay would not add to those losses.

Further delaying a reopening of the stadium, Multiplex said its client, Wembley National Stadium , had opted to put in its finishing touches, such as turnstiles and retail outlets, only after Multiplex completes its work, rather than working at the same time.

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Media reports said the first major football match was unlikely to be held at Wembley until February 2007.

Multiplex had originally planned to finish the £750 million (€1,076 million) reconstruction project by March 2006 but delayed it to May.

The new delay to June comes after a 50 tonne steel roof rafter slipped 11 days ago, forcing Multiplex to evacuate 3,000 workers from the site for a day.