We shouldn’t have a FIFA WC in Australia because it will disrupt the AFL season.

Cheers

The Tassie question is simply about critical mass, and on that score it fails. Look at the trouble Adelaide has had coming up with a solution that might see them in the running. That has involved a proposal for a major and expensive revamp of Adelaide Oval (and ovals aren’t particularly rectangular) which will stretch resources as it is. Trying to come up with a viable, attractive option in the apple isle simply won’t fly. Nice alternative AFL venue for a few weeks in the middle of a World Cup though.

whoaaa….hang on, Jimbo doesn’t respond to logic.

btw – it won’t matter because can you imagine FIFA providing Host city exemptions to BOTH AFL and NRL. Won’t happen. Aust WC, …. therefore,…..won’t happen. Has the Govt’s money on the bid thus far been better spent than investment in either Lara Bingle (“Where the hell are you”) or investment in “Australia” the movie…..probably. Probably got more people talking about Australia……not sure how many will come here for a holiday.

The WC bid doesn’t need Melbourne, ANZ stadium is over 85K and Suncorp is close enough to 60K.
With the $billion compensation that the AFL is claiming, let them have the MCG and Etihad and the money would be better spent building a few demountable rectangular stadiums that the NRL and ARU would apreciate as well.

The AFL don’t own any grounds, yet, but do have contractural priority at Docklands – and I can’t remember when they take ownership of that stadium.
All the FFA, and governments, have to do is find a way to expand the Bubble stadium and leave Docklands alone and everything will be fine in Melbourne. The FFA bid needs Melbourne, I’m yet to be convinced Australia has enough cities capable of holding matches and the FFA simply can not afford to drop one of the few that definitely can.

The Melbourne teams could play their Away games for 8 weeks while the WC is on and then their Home games after the WC to catch up.
With an extra million visitors in Australia – a lot of them would even go to an AFL game for the novelty and boost attendances.

Failing that, there is no need for any WC games to be played in Melbourne – for the sort of money the AFL is asking for compensation, the federal government could build 3 or 4 new rectangular stadiums elsewhere – the NRL and ARU would love it.

2. The AFL don’t own any grounds either.

The AFL can’t stop a FIFA WC being played in Australia.

I accept that you are one of the more sensible soccer contributors on Big Footy.

My view is simple:

1. The AFL should not be forced to cop a major financial loss just to line the pockets of a foreign entity.

2. True – if the FFA had the grounds – we woudn’t be having this discussion – it might just mean that this is all too premature – get to a stage where the A-League justifies a few grounds of a capacity of 60,000 plus, and then make a credible bid for it – with the full support of all Australians.

If you use existing venues – “Stop using our AFL grounds!”
If you build new venues – “They’ll be white elephants!”

What DO you want? Us to not host the World Cup? (rhetorical question..)

Now the idea is to have a legacy for rectangle codes to build on… NRL, Rugby, and definitely Tasmania FC (football) would move into and play there as a 14th (?) HAL franchise… AFL is not interested so what is your problem if the other codes support it..? Yes I know it’s a threat to the heart land of AFL…. What a disgrace….

Additional facilities also increase competition, reduce hiring costs and therefore ticket costs for patrons.

The more sporting facilities in Sydney, Tasmania, Newcastle or wherever the better – if you don’t want a WC in your city.

A new stadium for Tasmania would be excellent for the economy and local jobs.

Tasmania is only about an hours flight or short boat ride for the hundreds of thousands of Victorians who would like to see the WC and won’t get to because of the AFL.

Top suggestion.

It’s similar to the National Broadband Network – the original plans for a $20billion fibre-to-the-node network that would require access to Telstra’s network, was scrapped in favour of the $43billion fibre-to-the-home network – it was a lot more expensive but gave a better end result and negated the need for extended and costly legal wrangling with Telstra.

It is their proximity to Sydney an Melbourne that means they may make the viable hosts, thought Geelong certainly has big problems regarding a suitable ground as well. It would have to be Kardinia Park drastically remodelled, and is probably not viable – but is far better positioned than Hobart.
For Geelong and Wollongong games, Melbourne and Sydney accommodation can used; good highways and trains run between the cities and their respective nearby big cities. It might not be as good for “taking the game to the fans”, but they may be able to host games

Well what do you expect, this is the state that gave us the Greens!

This of course doesn’t take into account the fact that tickets would be extremely hard to get anyway …

Hobart, unlike Canberra, is a highly tourism focused economy – and as I said in the article, it is a constantly growing industry. There will be improvements that need to be made, but that applies nationwide.

If you can’t even get a small fact like that right, what else are you just making up to support your “argument”?

BTW, the one thing that does tend to bring Tassies together as one is an opportunity to stick it up you know-it-all north islanders who think we can’t do something.

Hobart is, by the way, a one hour flight from 4 million and a two hour flight from 9 or 10.

Australia is in a unique situation where we have a few very large cities and many small ones.

What a wonderful opportunity for Tasmania and its inhabitants with a population of 500k it would be; this can be achieved if the Tasmanian Government has the foresight to become one of the WC states… All the ingredients are there providing the Tasmanian Gov backs the WC bid….

A 25k all seated stadium would work not only for football but for the entire 3 rectangle codes you have mention in your article—no need to reiterate what you have proposed but to say it is achievable… If a tiny Spanish town with its tiny population can achieve such success with a Football club with its small population of only 48 thousand people, then Tasmania FC with 500k population is a walk in…. Good luck and keep up the campaign for Tasmania to enter the 21st century with a fulltime professional HAL Football club….

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villarreal_CF

“Vila-real [1] is a Spanish city in the province of Castelló, in the Valencian Community. Located 7 km to the south of the province’s capital (Castelló de la Plana), at 42 m above sea level, it has 48,000 inhabitants (2005 data), most of them living in the urban area that covers about 10.72% of its county’s 55.4 km2 surface. Ranked by population, it is the second city in the province (following the capital), and tenth in the Valencian Community.”

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KB

Aurora stadium could be upgraded to host WC matches, but a brand new rectangular stadium, you are basically trying to milk this WC bid for all its worth.