The A-League is set to be the biggest winner following the announcement that more than $1 billion will be invested across four Sydney stadiums in the coming years.
Three of those stadiums will be newly built with Moore Park, Olympic Park, Penrith and Parramatta the benefactors of the NSW government’s infrastructure spending.
A new stadium at Moore Park will replace the 30-year-old Allianz Stadium, with a 55,000 seat rectangular venue being built.
ANZ Stadium will become a premier versatile venue as it upgrades its existing structure to include a retractable roof, fan precinct and mobile end stands to completely transform from an oval to a rectangular ground.
Parramatta Stadium will be replaced by a 30,000 seat stadium, a long awaited upgrade to the basic facilities at the current site. Penrith will receive a news sports ground too, though it’s unlikely to commence construction until the other projects are in their final stages.
The major winners in this upgrade are Sydney’s A-League teams, who both get a new stadium with upgraded facilities and seating capacity. Parramatta stadium will become a true fortress for the Western Sydney Wanderers allowing for a greater fan experience and improved facilities for fans.
The new ground is set to play host to the Parramatta Eels during the winter months while the Wanderers will take over during the summer, allowing for an almost perfect ground share arrangement.
The Parramatta Stadium project has been prioritised over the others and could be completed by 2019 for an estimated cost of $300 million.
The Moore Park stadium project represents an exciting step for Sydney FC too. A larger stadium purpose-built for rugby and football will give Sydney fans the ability to have their own true home too.
While Allianz Stadium has been the team’s proud home for many years, its capacity has limited the fan experience during derby games and friendly matches.
While Socceroos matches and European friendlies have been played at ANZ Stadium in previous years, a larger capacity stadium at Moore Park means Sydney FC could hold some of these big friendly games in their own home ground.
More details on the Moore Park project are expected in the coming months.
The final stadium that provides an option for the A-League is ANZ Stadium. An upgrade to its ability to host rectangular matches will make it a large drawcard for many events. In previous years, the side stands have been able to move closer to the action during rectangular events but fans behind the goal still sat a long way from the action.
The revolutionary proposal for the stadium is that the end stands will be able to move forward too, creating a completely authentic rectangular experience during football and rugby matches. Of course, its capacity brings up an important footballing question.
Should this be the site where the Sydney Derby is contested?
Of course, it is unreasonable to expect both sides to be completely content with playing at a neutral venue, but the prospect of 80,000 football fans packing into a stadium with an enclosed roof and chanting until their throats are sore is an exciting one.
With three fixtures per season against each other, the question is certainly there as to whether even one of these games should be played at the neutral ANZ Stadium.
While the site will be hotly contested during footy season with several Sydney rugby league teams, the Sydney Swans and Greater Western Sydney Giants all competing for the ground during the winter, the ground remains relatively unused during summer save the odd cricket or rugby game.
The infrastructure upgrades in and around these venues makes the future of A-League football in world-class stadiums an exciting one.
If you’re an A-League, football or sporting fan, it’s worth getting excited over the future of our sports grounds.
Realfootball
Guest
I would love someone to explain to me just how this is good news for Sydney FC, who only average 18000 in a stadium that currently seats 45000. Now they will average 18000 in a stadium slightly larger than Suncorp. It will look awful on tv and feel empty live. A complete waste of money. SFC is too big as it is, and in any case is a great 45k seater that does not need a rebuild. This is just expensive and pointless pork barrelling.
Kaks
Roar Guru
Even the most optimistic fan would know that realistically 50k, maybe 60k, is the maximum that will currently turn up to a Sydney Derby if it were played at ANZ. On top of that, ANZ is a horrible venue to watch football.
Perry Bridge
Guest
So Allianz (or the SFS) - isn't it a 45,000 venue currently?? What's wrong with that? Is it a knock down and rebuild 55K or is it a reno job? All this smells to me of the next series of Ch.9s "The Block - Stadiums" Now - is this $1 billion of Govt money only? or are the codes, especially the now cashed up NRL - going to contribute? Also - given these were ideally part of the carrot dangled for an Aust FIFA WC bid - and, like the carrots dangled to the AFL - they seem to be happening anyway - does that mean any of the following? A. that everyone reckons Qatar will lose the 2022 and it'll revert to nearest the pin (reverso style) and Australia will host B. that should Australia win the right to host that Govt's will then seek a dividend back from FIFA for the stadiums built on the hope that sometime in the coming millennia that Australia might host the event.
lester
Guest
There will be hell to pay if MVFC move more games to anywhere but AAMI Park.
Waz
Guest
I think you guys would fill it :)
CG2430
Guest
Speaking of stadium funds, does anyone have any detail on the proposed single stadium trust? Could we end up with a Queensland situation where a single government body has sports teams over a barrel because they control the whole shebang? (It is apparently law in Queensland that no private concern may build a stadium over 9,999 capacity).
Kaks
Roar Guru
Increase in membership numbers and 13k season average for a club who was largely at the bottom of the table. That isnt bad at all
Kaks
Roar Guru
Disagree. I would much rather have Allianz or Parra Stadium at capacity more than I would want 60k at ANZ for the Sydney Derby. You would lose a whole heap of atmosphere, and the A-league's big draw card is the atmosphere that teams like WSW create
josh
Guest
16,500 members and growing each day - or does that fact not fit in with your bandwagon theory ?
Waz
Guest
Don't you think it's interesting Nic that they've "tripled revenues" within two years but are still losing money?
SVB
Guest
Locked in? Kebab references and subtle racial jokes. This isn't Eddie McGuire is it? You've got to love AFL supporters. If it isn't booing aboriginals it's all about some other racial group they can poke fun at.
cm
Guest
Membership numbers didn't drop.
Nick Nack
Guest
Yes. WSW fans were falling off as their teams fortunes dipped last season. We'll see with a run at the bottom how many show up.
smell the fear
Guest
well they didnt build the SCG to its current state for SHield cricket
smell the fear
Guest
GWS - they get 8k but they count feet not heads
144
Roar Guru
Heard last night that Sydney FC Chairman Scott Barlow announced that the club is making triple what they made since 2013. They are actually very close to breaking even. New sponsors and the stadium funds will help them get out of the red and over the line. 30,000 is a decent number, i think the stadiums in the big cities need to be at a regulation where they are international match available, for example if in a few decades we decide to bid for the world cup, we should have more teams in the a-league and more stadiums at WOrld Cup regulation. Not sure what the regulations are but i believe that Pirtek are not too far away. Can't wait for two Sydney Derbies at a packed out 40,000 seater allianz.
Epiquin
Roar Guru
Absolutely. There is some backlash about the money being spent on Stadiums. The usual "Why not spend it on hospitals?" kind of of thing, but Mike Baird has said (and this truck me as being an excellent point) that this is a once-in-a-generation chance to get it right. Rather than fixing things up here and there, they have an opportunity to build a great foundation with facilities that will last and serve the needs of the community for decades. I get the feeling the government will perhaps "accidentally" overspend on this, but will save the state in the long run.
AZ_RBB
Guest
The stadium managers are keen on moving level 6 around 20 metres closer to the action. This could truly the turn stadium into an impressive venue as my main gripe with it is how far away you are when you sit any where but level 1 (which is far from the action itself). The issue is that the government hasn't committed anywhere near enough to the stadium to fund this idea. The stadium managers want an additional $150M to move level 6 in. No idea how they'll manage it. Seems like a massive task.
Ian
Guest
i wonder if smell the fear is concerned about football stadiums being under utilised by other sporting codes? or sheffield shield matches getting non existent crowds?
Epiquin
Roar Guru
I had read reports recently that there were plans to somehow move all 83,000 seats at ANZ Stadium closer to the action, not just the ends. I'm not sure how they would go about achieving this without a complete rebuild, but if they manage it, it would be awesome. Australia has a world class, 100,000 seat stadium for round-field sports like cricket and AFL, but it doesn't have a world-class stadium for rectangular sports that is bigger than 50,000. A permanently rectangular ANZ Stadium would be of better use than a jack of all trades, master of none, moveable tier stadium we have now.