Football Association’s financial troubles threaten construction of £100m flagship coaching centre

Construction of the Football Association’s (FA) planned National Football Centre (NFC) may be delayed or even cancelled because of funding problems.

The FA is believed to be £10m short of finding the £100m required for the new coaching centre at Burton.

It is seeking a development partner to fund construction of the hotel and leisure complex crucial to the business plan.

The main board is to decide before Christmas on whether the NFC project, into which it has already put £24m, will go ahead.

But unless funding can be found by November, then the centre’s construction will be delayed. It was originally planned to open in summer 2012, but now may not open until after the Olympics.

The FA is making cuts of 10% across all its budgets over the next three years, as a result of a £60m shortfall created by the collapse of its former broadcast partner, Setanta.

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