Is a 25,000 capacity stadium enough?

[The Goon]

Hi guys. Wanted you opinions on this, and please correct me if my figures are wrong. From what I understand the new Carrara stadium has a 25,000 spectator capacity.

During the bid for an AFL license process the Suns registered 40,000 signatures for people interested in bringing the AFL to the Gold Coast.
This season the Suns hit 10,000 members without playing an AFL game.

If the Suns start to fire in 2-3 years will the stadium be too small?

 

[CoastBhoy]

Should be , the only other regional city to have a AFL team is Geelong and that has about the same .

 

[UrLordLeper]

Yes, Skilled Stadium's capacity is only 2,700 IIRC. However it must be said that all their home matches against the larger victorian clubs are at the MCG..
I would have liked Carrara to have a capacity of 3,000 though, as I am not so sure that the GC fans would be as willing to go to the Gabba for home games against bigger drawing clubs.
Also I want there to be enough room at Carrara for everyone who wants to go to get a seat. I'm not sure if you know this, but the WC Eagles have around 45,000 members, but a stadium that can only hold 40,000 people, so not all their members can go to all the games, and seats for the general public (around 2,000 for each game) get bought out really quickly. It would be a bad thing for AFL (and AFL fans) on the Gold Coast if the same situation developed.

 

[The Goon]

Should be , the only other regional city to have a AFL team is Geelong and that has about the same .

As UrLord said, Skilled is 27,000 odd capacity and in the last few years just about every game has been sold out. Not the situation you'd want if you're trying to grow the game in the area I'd have thought.

Be interesting too see how the crowds stack up against the Titans, they pay in an approx 25,000 seat stadium too don't they?

 

[Lord_Flashheart]

Another thing to consider is if we are the successful bidder for the Commonwealth Games for 2018 then there has been discussions to increase capacity up to approx 40,000. I would imagine if we were drawing big numbers that this would be a handy fitout to happen, and with perhaps minimal AFL contribution in funds.

 

[exile]

I wouldn't take much notice of the 40,000 people who signed up to be interested. There was some sort of competition between the local junior AFL clubs to see who could sign up the most people, so they just went to schools and asked people to sign.

I'd have thought it would be around the 30,000 mark.

I think it'll be more that enough, sadly.

 

[CoastBhoy]

As UrLord said, Skilled is 27,000 odd capacity and in the last few years just about every game has been sold out. Not the situation you'd want if you're trying to grow the game in the area I'd have thought.

Be interesting too see how the crowds stack up against the Titans, they pay in an approx 25,000 seat stadium too don't they?

These stadiums are not cheap to build , 25k is plenty , until comm games when it whacks up to 40k , that gives us 7-8 years of growing.

 

[UrLordLeper]

These stadiums are not cheap to build , 25k is plenty , until comm games when it whacks up to 40k , that gives us 7-8 years of growing.

That's true. I think for the next 8-10 years 25,000 should be enough.. And the advantage of a smaller capacity is it makes it seem 'fuller' - it improves the atmosphere..
If the Suns are going well and filling up the stadium in 6 years or so then that would be the time to upgrade it for the Commonwealth Games.. (Should we win that). It's bad enough that the Suns won't even be able to play at Carrara till halfway through next season, delaying that even further just to make it bigger would be a mistake.

 

[HereIam86]

I don't reckon it will be because when the Lions play Blues Pies Saints Cats they get like 30 somthing thounds.

 

[The_Wookie]

getting some sort of upgrade to 40k anyway for world cup or commonwealth games purposes isnt it?

 

[SandyToes]

I don't reckon it will be because when the Lions play Blues Pies Saints Cats they get like 30 somthing thounds.

The economic modelling that allowed the stadium to be built was done on 5000 interstate visitors per game I think, which translated to about a one million dollar per game tourist spend....I think that's conservative.
There's no doubt that when we play Collingwood the tooth to jaw ratio will fall significantly for the city.
I would think 25000 is plenty..but I'd reckon there will be at least 10000 opposition supporters both local and interstate to each game.
3 words
Jetstar Virgin Tiger
More people will want to travel to the Gold Coast for a long footy weekend in Winter than any other game I'd wager...including Brisbane..a town built in a place I still haven't worked out why it was built where it was.
In many ways the Stadium has been built initially anyway to host opposition supporters rather than our own.

 

[The Goon]

The economic modelling that allowed the stadium to be built was done on 5000 interstate visitors per game I think, which translated to about a one million dollar per game tourist spend....I think that's conservative.
There's no doubt that when we play Collingwood the tooth to jaw ratio will fall significantly for the city.
I would think 25000 is plenty..but I'd reckon there will be at least 10000 opposition supporters both local and interstate to each game.
3 words
Jetstar Virgin Tiger
More people will want to travel to the Gold Coast for a long footy weekend in Winter than any other game I'd wager...including Brisbane..a town built in a place I still haven't worked out why it was built where it was.
In many ways the Stadium has been built initially anyway to host opposition supporters rather than our own.

Gold

 

[Eastern Rangers]

Full Stadium with waiting list is better than a half empty stadium with no atmosphere and no waiting list.

 

[catters05]

Will be a great stadium for the Gold Coast which is hopefully filled each week.

Hopefully they have a lot of small corporate boxes as well and make a big cash load like the Cats do.

IMO, GCFC should look at starting a travel company, and selling Gold Coast Footy Trips to Victorians especially with the teams playing. Could be a cash cow for them.

 

[Black Falcon]

Will be a great stadium for the Gold Coast which is hopefully filled each week.

Hopefully they have a lot of small corporate boxes as well and make a big cash load like the Cats do.

IMO, GCFC should look at starting a travel company, and selling Gold Coast Footy Trips to Victorians especially with the teams playing. Could be a cash cow for them.

If GC quickly get to 25k members, then there aint much wiggle room for those travel company tickets.

 

[Black Falcon]

More thoughts: GC 25k members in first year
GC a shoe-in for Cwealth 2018 Games
Premier Bligh announces late 2011 that Carrara capacity will be increased to 30k at least.

 

[catters05]

Brisbane Lions will have to lift their game off field as Suns could become big brother in less then 10 years.

Hope this rivalry really becomes quite intense like SA and WA, QLDers will love it i think.

 

[Black Falcon]

Lions have just had a far-reaching review post season, to gear themselves for the challenge of the Sunshine newbies. (Not to mention Vossys mad recruiting - Staker and Maguire excepted)

A measure of the success of GC will be their antagonism with Lions.
Lets just call it the Riski-Brennan-Hart factor for starters.
JUst think, they could have had Vossy as coach!

 

[Black Falcon]

Brisbane Lions will have to lift their game off field as Suns could become big brother in less then 10 years.

Hope this rivalry really becomes quite intense like SA and WA, QLDers will love it i think.

Quite right, the "stuff-FItzroy attitude" was a season starting stinker.

 

[SandyToes]

Quite right, the "stuff-FItzroy attitude" was a season starting stinker.

yeah..you don't want to alienate any potential supporter base in this day and age...just didn't make sense

 

[UrLordLeper]

yeah..you don't want to alienate any potential supporter base in this day and age...just didn't make sense

True.. I was never a Fitzroy supporter but it made me happy that they were keeping the tradition / jumper alive.. I was really outraged when they announced they were changing the Lion.
On the bright side, if they keep turning fans / members / potential supporters away there's a greater pool of support for GWS and GC to target.

 

[Black Falcon]

True.. I was never a Fitzroy supporter but it made me happy that they were keeping the tradition / jumper alive.. I was really outraged when they announced they were changing the Lion.
On the bright side, if they keep turning fans / members / potential supporters away there's a greater pool of support for GWS and GC to target.

Lets just say that the Lions have done their damndest this season to help get GC Suns off to a flying start. Even gave them two of our best - at a price.

Any waivering Lions supporters would be now be full-on Suns.
A big to Lions Board members this season.
Their only defence would be "we didn't see it coming".
Which is why so many of the Lions Board are going or gone.

Hell, BTTT. Premier Bligh - make it 35k capacity for 2014.

 

[TimeReaper]

I think 25,000 seats will be fine to for a while.

Anna Bligh has said should we win the Commonwealth Games bid she will Fill out the northern end. (I think its the northern end that is not part of the stadium.) which will total about 40,000 seats. (fingers crossed we get the games)

link


Looking forward to our first real home game against the Cats in May.

 

[Ant_]

25k seems about right to me.

 

[Interceptor]

An overview from earlier this year about the 4-way battle on the Gold Coast for sporting fans. Mentions at the time of the article (July), the Titans average home crowd had dropped to around 17k from 21k in 2008.

I reckon the AFL are hoping for 15-20k for most matches and a full stadium for any matches with "blockbuster" status.