The stadium was granted a safety certificate Tuesday following two successful test events, the Football Association said. The $1.54 billion stadium hosted an exhibition match on March 17 and an under-21 soccer game between England and Italy last Saturday.
With the certificate, the stadium now can fill its 90,000 seats. The capacity was capped for the test events, with about 34,000 people attending the exhibition and 56,000 fans attending the under-21 match.
The FA Cup last was played at Wembley Stadium in 2000, when Chelsea beat Aston Villa 1-0. The game has been played at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, since then. The old Wembley Stadium was knocked down in 2001.
“It’s the announcement that a lot of people have been waiting for and is great news for football fans in this country and indeed the world over,” FA chief executive Brian Barwick said Tuesday.
Wembley Stadium managing director Alex Horne said he received the keys to the stadium two weeks ago.
“We realize that there is still some way to go yet and are digesting the feedback we have received in order to ensure that coming to Wembley Stadium is a fantastic experience for fans,” Horne said.
