Wembley row is officially over

Contractor Multiplex and client Wembley National Stadium Ltd have reached an out of court settlement on their disputes on Wembley, the parties confirmed today.

The agreement, which is understood to involve WNSL making an extra payment of about £35m to Multiplex, will end fears of a lengthy court battle between the parties.

The settlement covers all outstanding disputes between the parties, including Multiplex’s late fees and the impact of design changes made by WNSL.

Multiplex chief executive Andrew Roberts said: "We are very pleased to have reached agreement with WNSL and the FA to put our past differences behind us and put all our joint efforts into completing Wembley Stadium at the earliest opportunity."

The FA chief executive Brian Barwick said: "This agreement secures the process of getting the new Wembley Stadium up, running and open to the public. We look forward to staging major events at the stadium next year and consider this agreement with Multiplex to represent the beginning of the end of the construction phase. Everyone's target is now to complete what will be the finest stadium in the world."

WNSL chief executive Michael Cunnah said: "This is very welcome news for everyone involved with the stadium. This project was founded on the shared desire of WNSL and Multiplex to create a truly special stadium and it is very appropriate that we should enter the final stages of the project working together to get the stadium operational. Multiplex played an intrinsic part in getting this stadium project up off the ground and I am delighted to be working together to achieve our original vision."