OFFICIAL NRL Grand Final set to stay in Sydney till 2042

[PerthBrissy987]

The NRL grand final is set to remain in Sydney until 2042 after the NSW government committed to redeveloping ANZ Stadium into a rectangular configuration.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian outlined details of a compromise deal in the Sydney stadium debate at a press conference on Thursday in which she admitted there had been a very real chance the state would have lost the NRL grand final to Brisbane without the upgrade of ANZ Stadium.

The former Olympic venue is home to Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, South Sydney Rabbitohs and Wests Tigers, and is also Sydney's venue for State of Origin and has been the home for the NRL grand final since the stadium opened in 1999.


It will be reconfigured into a rectangular stadium but will no longer be knocked down and rebuilt.

However, the Premier announced a new stadium would still go ahead at Moore Park, with Allianz Stadium to be knocked down and rebuilt at a cost of $730 million.

The $1.5 billion investment in the two stadiums honours a Memorandum of Understanding between the NRL and the NSW government to stage the grand final in Sydney for the next 25 years.

"I am also pleased to say that the grand final will still remain in NSW for the next 25 years," Berejiklian said.


Had we not invested in our stadiums we would have been at risk and in fact definitely lost events to other states.
Gladys Berejiklian
"That is a really big coup for us and we know how important that is … to making sure we retain all of those major events which we were definitely in risk of losing.

"I don't want to underestimate that enough. Had we not invested in our stadiums we would have been at risk and in fact definitely lost events to other states."

 

[Browny]

Fine then, but let’s give Adelaide an Origin game lolz

 

[Unbreakable]

$1.5b investment because Queensland constantly has bigger crowds, ouch. Don't think this will solve anything, just more empty seats on a weekly basis.

 

[Morkel]

NSWRL everyone.

 

[Nashy]

Fucking *****.

 

[Super Freak]

Not surprising. QLD was never going to get the GF.

 

[Alec]

To be honest, wouldn't a grand final ticket at ANZ still be cheaper than a normal ticket at Suncorp? I can't support Suncorp with their insane ticket prices.

 

[Super Freak]

To be honest, wouldn't a grand final ticket at ANZ still be cheaper than a normal ticket at Suncorp? I can't support Suncorp with their insane ticket prices.

Suncorp isn't that expensive.

They jack up the prices for Origin but apart from that you can go to a game at Suncorp for $25-$30.

 

[Renegade]

I don't really have an issue with this tbh

 

[tommy]

I’m also ashamed of my complete lack of outrage..

Same, I think partly because I'm really not surprised. I could understand a 5 or 10 year contract but 25 years is an eternity and a big **** you to QLD. So much for growing the game.

 

[Number6]

NSWRL. Prefer Super Bowl like arrangement where game should be a spectacle regardless of where it is. Need to build an extended halftime show with a current huge international act and make the ads an event. Move it around to major stadiums 50000+ if there is adequate support with a big carnival type atmosphere.

Sydney stadium fixes will add a few thousand seats a week maybe. Enormous waste of tax payer money. Better to put teams back into local grounds with lower cost upgrades.

Sucks to get to Moore Park and Olympic stadium is terrible. Without knocking whole thing down won’t be a great rectangular stadium.

A rectangular stadium similar to Suncorp would be great in Sydney if close to rail and road and where people actually want to go so attached to some night life. Not an easy ask given nature of Sydney.

 

[Super Freak]

Rugby League isn’t big enough in Australia to do what the NFL do.

 

[The Strapper]

Can't say I was surprised at this either but they have still got it all wrong.

Reconfiguring the Olympic Stadium is a wast of money the only time the NRL can fill it is the grand final they cannot even fill it for Origin without giving away large amounts of free or discounted tickets. The govt should dump it and sell the land off.

Allianz does need to be rebuilt and it should be about a 60,000 seat stadium with a retractable roof which would be enough to cater for everything except the grand final but you can't justify a whole stadium (Homebush) for just one game a year.

Some of the money saved by not redeveloping homebush should be put into upgrading some of the various club grounds which sorely need it. They could also look at buiding a boutique home ground for any club who doesn't have one and is interested in partnering with the govt. to establish one.

Never thought I'd say this but I feel sorry for the NSW taxpayers a lot of whose money is being wasted.

 

[Broncos Maestro]

The NSWRL - where two ***** are rarely given.

 

[Super Freak]

Can't say I was surprised at this either but they have still got it all wrong.

Reconfiguring the Olympic Stadium is a wast of money the only time the NRL can fill it is the grand final they cannot even fill it for Origin without giving away large amounts of free or discounted tickets. The govt should dump it and sell the land off.

Allianz does need to be rebuilt and it should be about a 60,000 seat stadium with a retractable roof which would be enough to cater for everything except the grand final but you can't justify a whole stadium (Homebush) for just one game a year.

Some of the money saved by not redeveloping homebush should be put into upgrading some of the various club grounds which sorely need it. They could also look at buiding a boutique home ground for any club who doesn't have one and is interested in partnering with the govt. to establish one.

Never thought I'd say this but I feel sorry for the NSW taxpayers a lot of whose money is being wasted.

So where does the GF go if ANZ is knocked down and sold and Allianz can’t cater for it?

 

[GCBRONCO]

So where does the GF go if ANZ is knocked down and sold and Allianz can’t cater for it?

Redfern Oval

 

[Number6]

So where does the GF go if ANZ is knocked down and sold and Allianz can’t cater for it?

Allianz. 60000 seats are fine for a grand final, probably get more money per ticket if people can see the game without a telescope anyway. Or as I previously stated move it around.

Like the roof idea. To get people to games in middle of winter or rain would make a huge difference especially if under cover transport options.

 

[Number6]

Rugby League isn’t big enough in Australia to do what the NFL do.

NFL isn’t as big as the Super Bowl, half the people watching are only there for the ads and halftime show. Run it at break even or perhaps as a loss leader to get people into the game and build it rather than over-pay players and administrators. Real risk of TV contracts being at peak. Need to use all this cash to invest in the game.

Imagine getting 5 million watching the NRL grand final. Only way we are going to achieve that is making it a spectacle. Also would build international audience. Build in NZ, get more of Britain watchers.

Need to start having big ideas to combat other codes. Game is stagnant at moment.