The new 3,100-capacity West Stand at Leicester Tigers’ Welford Road stadium is nearing completion, with the standard seating and concourse being prepared for the opening month of the rugby season and the rest of the stand due to complete in January 2016.

Construction work on the £8m stand, undertaken by contractors Buckingham, began in May this year and when complete will increase capacity at the venue to 26,000.

The West Stand will replace the old Clubhouse building, which only had a capacity of 992 fans and dated back to 1909.

It will house club offices, the main ticket office, a premium season ticket lounge, a Tigers retail shop, stadium big screen and control tower and a concourse area filled with food kiosks and public bars.

The work is part of a phased redevelopment scheme, designed by AFL Architects, which will see the capacity of the Premiership Rugby Club increasing from 17,000 to more than 30,000. The project also includes an adjacent three-star Hotel, multi-storey car park and an educational building.

The first phase – the £15m MET-Rx Stand – was completed on time for the start of the 2009 season and is the UK’s second largest single tier stand, with a capacity of 10,660 spectators and a 1,000 seat flexible banqueting room.

To see a virtual tour of the new West Stand, click here to visit the Leicester Tigers website.