Man City to expand ground

London - Manchester City have been given the green light to expand the capacity of the Etihad Stadium to more than 60 000, Manchester's municipal authority have announced on Thursday.

Manchester City Council said that a planning application for the addition of 14 500 extra seats at the venue had been approved.

The Etihad currently seats 47 670 people and the increased capacity will make it the second-biggest ground in the Premier League, behind only Manchester United's 75 731-seater Old Trafford.

City are currently constructing a new £200 million training base adjacent to the stadium, the City Football Academy, which is due to open later this year.

The two projects continue City's development into one of the heavyweights of European football following their takeover by the Abu Dhabi United Group in 2008.

The Etihad in east Manchester, also known as the City of Manchester Stadium, was built in 2000 for use in the 2002 Commonwealth Games.