9 March 2007 - Wembley Reborn

On 9 March 2007, construction was completed on the new Wembley Stadium and the keys handed over to the Football Association after multiple delays and a loss of almost £200 million to the stadium's general contractor.

With construction starting in 2000, initial plans for the stadium called for its completion in 2003. But legal issues and problems with financing quickly pushed the scheduled opening back to May 2006. Problems with construction dogged the new project, however, including delays related to the building of the stadium's iconic arch that resulted in the replacement of the subcontractors in charge of it.

In 2004, 54-year old carpenter Patrick O'Sullivan died when a scaffolding collapsed. More problems followed in 2006, including damage to the sewers underneath the stadium due to improper installation, pushing the completion date again, this time into 2007. Multiplex, the stadium's general contractor, claimed that many of the delays were the fault of subcontractor WNSL, resulting in litigation between the two companies.

The 90,000-seat stadium was finally completed in March 2007 at a total cost of approximately £1 billion. Multiplex reportedly suffered a loss of £187 million on the project.

The first competitive football match played at the new stadium was the 2007 FA Trophy Final between Kidderminster Harriers and Stevenage Borough. It has since hosted several cup finals and English national team matches, as well as concerts. It is also the venue for the upcoming 2011 UEFA Champions League Final.