It features the world's first dividing, retractable football pitch, which reveals a synthetic turf field underneath for NFL London Games, concerts and other events.

[19] As their matches became more popular with the public and the number of spectators increased, the club decided to move to an enclosed ground allowing it to charge an entrance fee and control the crowd.

[20] However, the ground soon became overcrowded, and in 1899 the club moved to a piece of land owned by the brewery company Charringtons to the east of Tottenham High Road behind the White Hart pub.

[24] Beginning in the early 1980s, the White Hart Lane ground was redeveloped, and in order to comply with the recommendation of the Taylor Report of 1989, it was turned into an all-seater stadium.

[31][32] In April 2008, the club revealed that it was considering the acquisition of the Wingate Trading Estate immediately adjacent to the north of White Hart Lane for building the stadium.

[33] In October 2008, the Northumberland Development Project, which included the construction of a stadium, as well as a club museum, homes, shops and other facilities, was announced.

[55][56][57] In March 2012, Haringey Council approved of plans to hand over council-owned land in the redevelopment area, including part of Wingate Trading Estate, as well as Paxton Road and Bill Nicholson Way, to Spurs.

[58][59] After a long delay, the Secretary of State for the Department for Communities and Local Government, Eric Pickles, confirmed the CPO on 11 July 2014.

[60][61] The owner of the remaining business with two plots on the development site, Archway Sheet Metal Works, then attempted but failed to have the CPO decision quashed in the High Court.

[70] Building work on the Northumberland Development Project started in September 2012, however, construction of the stadium itself did not commence until 2015 due to the CPO dispute.

[91] Four test events were initially planned at the stadium in August and early September 2018;[15][92] the first two were intended only for club staff and officials,[93][94] and the following two open to the public with increasing levels of attendance necessary for the issuing of safety certificate.

[95][96] However, issues with the critical safety systems due to faulty electrical wiring delayed the completion of the stadium,[97][98] and these two games were postponed to March 2019.

[1][116] The bowl shape of the stadium comes from the need to maximise hospitality facilities while the asymmetry is the result of the creation of a single-tier stand in the south.

[120] The front of the West Stand faces the High Road and features a projecting, angled, glazed box that encases an escalator and serves as the main entrance for guests and patrons.

[122][123] The bulk of the structure dominates the surrounding area, but the appearance of the mass of the building is modulated by different claddings of glass, metal panels and pre-cast concrete.

[130] The corners of the stadium are enclosed and the stands are placed close to the pitch, with fans generating a "wall of sound" that can reverberate around the ground.

[130] The tiers of the stands are set at angles of up to 35 degrees, the maximum permissible in British stadium design,[10][135] and all seats provide clear views of the pitch for the ticket holders.

Grow lights are suspended on six 70-metre trusses to encourage the growth of the grass in the shaded areas of the stadium, and they can be folded away under the North Stand when not in use.

[164][165][89] The grass can also be maintained for up to 5 days with artificial lighting, air ventilation, dehumidification and irrigation systems when the pitch is retracted under the south podium.

These include two Sky Lounges on the top floor of the East and West Stands, with views over London and the pitch, the Sky Bridge, which is the world's first bridge to be suspended from the roof of a stadium, 65 suites of private loges and super loges, Michelin star level dining, and the Tunnel Club that allows its members to observe the players as they walk from the dressing room to the pitch through a glass-walled tunnel.

[122] To the south of the stadium, the raised podium forms a large open public square that may be used for a range of sporting and community activities.

The museum is located in the Grade II listed Warmington House, and the new club shop is the largest in Europe, featuring a 100-seat auditorium area that may be used for pre-match experiences.

[193] This was later proposed to be increased to 30 after Beyoncé's fifth show during her Renaissance World Tour caused the stadium to breach their licensing agreement and Haringey Council approved the move in 2024.

[228][229] The stadium was initially to host the Anthony Joshua vs. Kubrat Pulev for the heavyweight world titles for its first bout on 20 June 2020 but it was postponed and rescheduled elsewhere due to the pandemic.

[263] In order to reduce debt-servicing costs and improve annual cash flow, £525 million of the debt was refinanced by issuing bonds that will mature in 15 to 30 years' time.

[264][265] The club aims to pay for the stadium through a number of means: income from ticket sales is forecast to increase to £100 million per year, more than twice that earned from White Hart Lane;[168] revenues from other sports hosted at the stadium with the NFL contributing £10 million to the initial cost;[266] increased hospitality and catering income,[267] as well as sponsorship, merchandising, advertising, concession and digital rights, and broadcast revenues.

[120] In June 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the club had to secure a £175m loan from the Bank of England due to the loss of expected revenue streams as matches and scheduled events such as concerts at the stadium had to be cancelled.

[270] The north London brewer Beavertown is the official craft beer supplier and it installed the world's first stadium-located microbrewery on the south east corner of the stadium.

[168] The Observer's architecture critic Rowan Moore, despite being unimpressed by the "ugliness" of its external appearance, chose it as one of the top five buildings of 2019,[279] arguing that the stadium is at its best as a venue for watching football, and that it has achieved "the desired combination of magnificence and intimacy".

The club also operates two high frequency shuttle bus services to the stadium, one from Alexandra Palace via Wood Green (on Piccadilly line) and finishing at Haringey Sixth Form College, and the other from Tottenham Hale to Duke's Aldridge Academy.