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The Sydney Football Stadium bids for $60 million makeover

beave

Coach
Messages
15,562
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sp...million-makeover/story-e6freye0-1226123545599

545563-sfs.jpg

THIS is the dream sporting venue that has been designed to get Sydney's stay-away sporting fans back to the football.

A spectacular new $60 million roof over the Sydney Football Stadium that will ensure every fan sits in comfort and out of the rain.

Plans to revamp the stadium into an iconic, world-class sporting venue come from damning research showing footy supporters have become couch potatoes and are watching on their plasmas instead of attending matches.

The Sydney Cricket Ground Trust is in the process of lobbying the state and federal governments for joint funding for the project.

The stadium was opened in 1988 and the new roof would be built in time for its 25th anniversary in 2013.

The project wouldn't increase the ground capacity from its 48,000 but would see improvements to general facilities, including new electronic scoreboards, dining facilities and food outlets.

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SFS and SCG crowds have fallen dramatically for rugby union and AFL in recent times, while Fox Sports and free-to-air ratings for the two sports have attracted record numbers.

The stadium management is convinced the only way to get crowds back is to improve facilities and the overall matchday experience.

Sydney has fallen behind all other states for modern sporting facilities. Plans have just been announced for a massive new $1.1 billion stadium in Perth and $700 million is being spent on the Adelaide Oval.

Brisbane has the magnificent Suncorp Stadium and Melbourne any number of great sporting venues.

We know that Sydney will host the Bledisloe Cup at ANZ Stadium for 10 years from next year, but the new-look SFS will almost certainly stage a second Test match played every year at the ground where the old diehard Rah-Rahs love watching their footy and socialising before and afterwards in all the Paddington watering holes.

There is also talk the Trust will make a serious pitch to get the South Sydney Rabbitohs out of Homebush and back to Moore Park.
 

docbrown

Coach
Messages
11,515
I like the look of it but wasn't the reason the Rabbitohs left because the rent was too high?

I say the NRL should only support this if they can get a slice of the pie.
 

M2D2

Bench
Messages
4,693
Rabbs left SFS because not only the rent was too high, but ANZ actually GIVES THEM MONEY to play at ANZ.
 

Yosemite Sam

Juniors
Messages
727
Would love to see this happen. The SFS is a great stadium but it could definitely do with a touch up. Building a decent roof and replacing all the seats would freshen it up a lot.
 

nqcowboy87

Bench
Messages
4,181
i must say i like it rather than knock such a great and iconic ground and have to start from scratch just add some simple improvements
 

Brutus

Referee
Messages
26,214
The capacity of the ground is not 48k as stated in the article.

I'd like to see it redeveloped into a 60k venue.
 

Spanner in the works

First Grade
Messages
6,073
The capacity of the ground is not 48k as stated in the article.

I'd like to see it redeveloped into a 60k venue.

I wouldn't. Not until we regularly get crowds over the 30k mark as average. It's pretty embarrassing seeing games with 8, 10, 12 thousand people at the moment. At that stage I think it would be prudent to upgrade. But by then I would refurbish the whole stadium.
 

Choppies

Coach
Messages
15,295
The capacity of the ground is not 48k as stated in the article.

I'd like to see it redeveloped into a 60k venue.


By the looks of the artist conception with the current upper tier going all the way around it could reach 60K.
I would like them to re do the corporate facilities honestly. The corporate boxes look very flimsy and out of place honestly. Integrate them with the seating, not looking like a Lego building I would have built when I was 8. They should also look into certain sections having in seat service.
 

Suitman

Post Whore
Messages
55,046
It says in the article that the capacity won't increase. Therefore, that second tier at the ends is bullshit.
Capacity is about 45500 anyway, not 48 000. Anther crap Telegraph article, Two things wrong with it already.

Suity
 

El Diablo

Post Whore
Messages
94,107
They should build something like a covered Suncorp in Western Sydney for WS teams to play out of
 

Chook Norris

First Grade
Messages
8,317
would prefer something out at western sydney, but hey, this could generate a significant increase in crowds at the SFS for a while imo
 

BunniesMan

Immortal
Messages
33,688
I like the look of it but wasn't the reason the Rabbitohs left because the rent was too high?

I say the NRL should only support this if they can get a slice of the pie.
Well it says their trust will make a 'pitch' to us. Presumably 'pitch' means telling us they'll pay us to play there instead of the other way around.

If they want to steal us away from their competitor, they'll have to.
 

Perth Red

Post Whore
Messages
65,957
Well it says their trust will make a 'pitch' to us. Presumably 'pitch' means telling us they'll pay us to play there instead of the other way around.

If they want to steal us away from their competitor, they'll have to.

why? surely if you were confident of attracting decent crowds then it would be better to pay a rent and keep all gate receipts, corporate advertising and bar/food takings?

A club attracting 20k avg could expect $500k+ in income a game. Even after rent you should be clearing $300k a game. How much does ANZ currently pay the Bunnies to play there?
 

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