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In the wonderful, debate-fuelled world of The Roar, there aren’t many things that Roarers can unanimously agree on. Except for one.
It seems that ANZ Stadium, the home of the Sydney Olympics, is about as popular as Matt Cecchin and Henry Peranara at the Cowboys’ mad Monday celebrations.
However, criticism of ANZ stadium is largely unjustified and there are a number of reasons why.
Let’s start with the most common argument “ANZ Stadium is nothing but a white elephant!”
The term white elephant generally refers to something that no longer has a useful purpose or is no longer wanted.
When you think about it, this description hardly applies to “Australia’s Home Ground.”
Considering the stadium averaged an event almost every week last year, I fail to see how it has outgrown its usefulness or its purpose.
When you also consider the fact that around 15 of these events exceeded 40,000 in attendance (the capacity of Sydney’s other venue, Allianz Stadium) the need for a stadium like ANZ in Sydney becomes abundantly clear.
Furthermore, around seven of these events were sell-outs, which more than demonstrate the demand for an 85,000-seat stadium in Sydney.
In all, over 1.6 million fans went through the gates at ANZ last year, hardly a white elephant.
Another major criticism of the ground is that it has no atmosphere.
Yet this isn’t an issue with the stadium itself, but more the decision to play low-drawing games at a stadium intended for major events.
I’m sure people would say the same thing if the beloved Parramatta stadium was only 10% full as well.
When the stadium has a big crowd the atmosphere is electric. Just ask anyone who’s attended an Origin, a Socceroos qualifier or the Lions tour at the ground, to name a few.
People are also quick to complain about the views at the ground. But have you stopped to consider if they are really all that bad?
Let me stop for a moment to clarify.
Is ANZ Stadium the best ground in Australia for watching rectangular field games like league or Football? No.
Is ANZ Stadium the best ground for watching round field codes like Aussie Rules or Cricket? No.
But it is the best ground for watching both.
Sure the views might not be as good as Suncorp or the MCG, but just because it is not the best, does not mean it’s the worst.
It’s like hating your 60-inch plasma screen because you know your mate across town has a 72-inch.
After all, on my first visit to the stadium as a teenager I marvelled at the sheer genius of the Stadium’s design and how I could be so high up in the nosebleed section and still have a good view of the game.
But the way people carry on, you’d think they were trying to watch the game from a rooftop in Strathfield.
You can disagree if you like, but complaining about the stadium because your view good view isn’t a great view makes you sound like an insatiable and demanding princess.
Like it or not, ANZ Stadium is the venue Sydney needs.
Built to accommodate the athletics track at the Sydney Olympics, the stadium was considered a world benchmark when it opened little more than 15 years ago. It is centrally located and accessible via public transport.
But its unique configuration also makes it versatile, which is absolutely vital to satisfy the most diverse sporting market in Australia.
It also has a lot of positives that rarely get mentioned. For instance, its fan engagement through social media is streaks ahead of other Australian venues and the NRL has just announced that rail travel to the venue will be free with all ticket purchases.
Other great initiatives include wifi and plans to upgrade the ground to include a roof and better facilities such as hotels.
Moreover, most of its faults are not actually faults with the stadium itself.
For instance, the Sydney Olympic Park precinct is grossly under-utilised and could do with more bars, restaurants, shopping and other forms of entertainment to provide fans with more pre and post-game revelling.
The poor atmosphere associated with small crowds could also be fixed with improved marketing from clubs and the NRL itself.
Malcontents will often propose that Sydney should build more stadiums in every pocket of Sydney from Barranagaroo to Blackheath with 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70 (or more) thousand seats to get the atmosphere “just right.”
But Australia has better things to spend its money on then ensuring that you are two metres closer to the action, especially when the world-class stadium it has provided is so underappreciated.
The hate for ANZ Stadium needs to stop.
Brookvale Oval on the other hand…
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