Leaked files show Premier League nearly had new team with 40,000-seater stadium

The Premier League came close to having a new team from Northern Ireland, leaked files show.

Swansea City and Cardiff City are the only two non-English sides who have participated in the top flight despite conversations about Celtic and Rangers being added into the mix.

Yet in the 1990's, there were plans to move an existing club to Belfast.

Tony Blair, Prime Minister at the time, was said to be supportive of the idea, which would have seen Wimbledon move to the capital of Northern Ireland.

The 1988 FA Cup winners had a spell playing home games at Crystal Palace's Selhurst Park but this change would have seen Wimbledon become 'Belfast United'.

As detailed by The Guardian, state papers that were previously not made public contained a note from 1997 which said it would be a "significant breakthrough if Belfast had a football team playing in the English Premier League”, and claims the move “should be able to build up strong cross-community support and provide a positive unifying force in a divided city”.

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A year on and another memo suggested Blair had given his seal of approval, viewing that "it would be excellent if Wimbledon were to move to Belfast and we should encourage this as much as possible".

The plans, which followed on from the signing of the Good Friday agreement, included a 40,000 capacity stadium funded primarily by the private sector and a sporting academy.

TV presenter and Manchester United fan Eamonn Holmes backed the proposals, with then-Wimbledon owner Sam Hammam believed to have explored the possibility.

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However, as expected, Irish football authorities were strongly opposed to the idea and it ultimately never happened.

They had plans to build a new national stadium for Northern Ireland but also did not materialise.

Wimbledon did move around 60 miles and rebrand though, becoming Milton Keynes Dons after entering administration in 2003.

A group of disgruntled fans responded by founding 'AFC Wimbledon' and both sides have a bitter rivalry in League Two.