Manchester United's Old Trafford served as a venue for football matches during the London 2012 Olympic Games.
The government has tasked UK Sport with carrying out an "initial strategic assessment" regarding a prospective bid for the north of England to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games in the 2040s.
UK Sport will evaluate the feasibility of the UK hosting the Games again since London 2012, considering potential costs, socio-economic benefits, and the likelihood of a successful bid.
"For too long we have been told the Olympics is simply too big and too important to be hosted in the north," Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy told .
"Not any more. It's time the Olympics came north and we showed what we can offer to the world.
"We know that we can pull off the most incredible, not just bid, but Olympics. So we're kick-starting that with a phase-one study about the investment, the resources, the infrastructure, the transport that we're going to need."
The results of UK Sport's study will inform whether a more detailed "technical feasibility study" should follow, with the British Olympic Association (BOA) ultimately deciding on any bid.
Background
In February, northern political leaders called on the government to ensure any future Olympic bid would be based in the region, asserting there is a "compelling" case and that the north "already has many of the foundations in place to deliver a world-class Games, including elite sporting venues, major stadia and arenas."
This appeal followed London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan's statement last year expressing his desire for the Games to return to the capital.
North East Mayor Kim McGuinness said: "I'm delighted ministers and sporting bodies are now exploring how we could turn this ambition into a reality. We stand ready to work together to develop a credible, deliverable vision that can make the case to the International Olympic Committee (IOC)."
A survey conducted in 2013 found that over two-thirds of the UK public believed the £8.77bn cost of London 2012 was justified, despite it being nearly three times the original budget.
The Games were credited with aiding the regeneration of east London and boosting the economy, although they did not achieve the anticipated increase in sporting participation.
"It was incredible for the country," said Nandy. "It brought in significant amounts of investment… it brought the whole nation together."
Sporting infrastructure
Manchester's previous Olympic bids for 1996 and 2000 were unsuccessful, but the city hosted the 2004 Commonwealth Games, utilizing the City of Manchester Stadium as the athletics venue. The stadium was later converted into a football arena for Manchester City, now known as the Etihad Stadium, among several major sports venues in the region.
Manchester also houses the national velodrome and an aquatics centre. Proposals have suggested Liverpool's Albert Dock and River Mersey as potential sailing venues, with the Lake District considered for open-water swimming events.
Manchester United has announced plans to construct a new 100,000-seat stadium by 2035. Leeds United also intends to develop Elland Road stadium.
'Particular challenges'
When asked about which stadium might serve as the focal point of a northern Olympic bid, Nandy stated,
"the study will look at identifying all of the potential sites that we're going to need…there are particular challenges around some of the athletics facilities, but actually these are things that any government should be addressing anyway, and an Olympic bid gives us the opportunity to do that."
She added,
"The reality of the current financial context is that we want to work with what infrastructure already exists. There is good infrastructure across the north of England, but it needs to be upgraded…You only need to look at some of the amazing infrastructure that we're building, like the new Everton stadium, to see exactly what we can do here."
To reduce costs and limit new infrastructure spending, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has shown increased openness to multi-city or regional bids.
"We've got to prove to them that we can do this in the north of England," said Nandy. "I believe that we can, though, and we're deadly serious about making it happen."
