AFL grand final to stay in Victoria until 2057, MCG and Docklands stadiums to be upgraded
Updated
The AFL grand final will stay in Victoria until 2057, and sporting facilities for women and in regional areas will be upgraded, as part of a $500 million package announced by the State Government.
Where the money's going:
- Princes Park will become the home of AFLW with a $20 million upgrade to facilities
- Docklands stadium and the MCG will be upgraded
- Up to $60 million of community sporting grants will be up for grabs
- Regional grounds will see more games of AFL
- Albert Park and Yarra Bend sporting precincts will get a $15.4 million upgrade
In a pre-budget announcement, Premier Daniel Andrews said $225 million would be spent on an upgrade of Melbourne's Docklands stadium to improve the ground for sports like soccer, rugby league and rugby union.
The funding will also go to improving women's changerooms in the stadium.
"It's an investment in the sports infrastructure that we need, the stadiums … that we need in order to stay number one," Mr Andrews told ABC Radio Melbourne.
"If you don't invest in those things then others pass you by.
"New South Wales is doing this, obviously Queensland will have a whole lot of legacy stadiums and other benefits coming out of the Commonwealth Games.
"Adelaide Oval's been completely rebuilt and of course Perth's got a stadium they've spent $1.5 billion on."
As part of the deal, the MCG will get funding to continue upgrades on the Southern Stand and home clubs will get fairer use of the ground.
"We know how competitive these [interstate] markets are … and we were not prepared to take that risk," Mr Andrews said.
The Brownlow will also stay in Victoria for at least the next decade.
AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan said sport was "such a huge part of this town".
"The AFL alone [has] a $3 billion economic impact for this state," he said.
"These sorts of deals means that we've got more money going into the clubs … and that means we can work hard to keep the game affordable."
Mr McLachlan said interstate teams would understand the decision to keep the AFL grand final at the MCG.
"We want as many people to go to the grand final as we can," he said.
"We're lucky in this country to have a 100,000-seat venue that is loved by sports followers."
Facilities improved for women, regional footy
Women's football will get a $20 million boost. Women's facilities will be upgraded at Princes Park in Carlton and Whitten Oval in Footscray.
There will also be more football in regional Victoria. Under the deal, Ballarat in central Victoria is guaranteed to host two AFL matches a year for the next decade.
Geelong will get at least eight AFL matches a year for the next 30 years.
The budget will also provide $60 million for community sporting grants and $5 million for community infrastructure loans which will "unlock" up to $100 million to upgrade local facilities.
Albert Park, Yarra Bend and other key sporting precincts will undergo upgrades worth $15.4 million.
An additional $17.7 million will go to more than 75 national and international sporting events each year, more than half of which will be in regional Victoria.
Topics: states-and-territories, state-parliament, parliament, australian-football-league, sport, richmond-2753, docklands-3008, footscray-3011, carlton-3053, melbourne-3000, vic
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