According to this article in today's Age, Melbourne's soccer and rugby franchises are set to score "fantastic" stadium deals at the new government funded rectangular stadium, requiring "relatively low crowds to break even", by playing the government and Etihad off against each other. http://www.theage.com.au/news/sport...premier-stadium/2009/11/23/1258824670306.html Apart from wondering why the government didn't lock the deals in before agreeing to part with $280m of taxpayers money, I imagine there are ten Victorian AFL clubs with about 300,000 members between them who are wondering how their preferred sport missed out on such generous government support. Even with the renegotiated deals at the MCG and Etihad, Victorian AFL clubs are still effectively funding the construction of those stadiums, whereas our sport's competitors will be paying a bargain basement rent. How can Australian Football compete against this sort of favouritism?
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Stadium deals: the winners are soccer and rugby
- Thread starter zachary
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Dogs Of War
Team Captain
Given that their will be over 45 matches a year played at that stadium. It will get a lot of use during the season, and the income it brings from interstate vistors will more than make up for any percieved loss. Not to mention that I am sure they will hike up the ground hire fees down the track once attendances have reached a good level.
ohh 45 whole games
there are something like 120 AFL games played in melbourne each year, not counting the finals.
from all the hysteria and shitscared paranoia im hearing from sydney, its shameful that the government isnt putting that sort of money into the number one code, or at least hospitals and infrastructure...
isnt that what you put in your letter to your MP dogs?
or is government spending 10s of millions on sport OK if one of the sports is league?
Dogs Of War
Team Captain
At one stadium. Wow that's impressive. You know the what the point is. 8 games a year for what probably amounts to 5 years max is a waste of money. Especially when after the AFL moves to Stadium Australia full time, no team will actually use the stadium just like it is now.
Why doesn't the AFL just use the best facility in Sydney available that's 300 metres away and the AFL actually provided funding for to ensure it was suitable for AFL.
The main difference between Soccer/Rugby and the AFL is the good old Supply vs Demand theory.
There 2 grounds (Etihad and the Bubble) fighting for Soccer and Rugby (4 teams) and neither ground have arrangements with the organising body that certain amount of games have to be played there
There are 2 grounds (Etihad and MCG) fighting for 9 AFL teams. And both grounds have arrangements with the AFL that x amount of games have to be played there. So really, why give AFL teams good deals when they know that they are guaranteed games will be played at their ground?
There 2 grounds (Etihad and the Bubble) fighting for Soccer and Rugby (4 teams) and neither ground have arrangements with the organising body that certain amount of games have to be played there
There are 2 grounds (Etihad and MCG) fighting for 9 AFL teams. And both grounds have arrangements with the AFL that x amount of games have to be played there. So really, why give AFL teams good deals when they know that they are guaranteed games will be played at their ground?
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- #7
How nice for you. As a supporter of Australian Football watching our game in stadiums we have paid for ourselves, I'd like to thank the government for next to nothing.
JiMaRaS
Senior List
You have sort of answered the question yourself. AFL is able to pay for itself due to its overwhelming support in Melbourne. Soccer and Rugby on the other hand need a hand to establish themselves. If that means better deals for those codes for long term gain, sobeit!!
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- #10
So in a multi billion dollar business, if one competitor is less popular, it's up to the government to even things up with hand outs. I bet Holden would be rapt if the government decided to build a free factory for Ford because it needed " a hand". Or to put it another way, if you are succesful and have stood on your own feet while your competitors have made a mess of themselves, they should be rewarded at your expense.
JiMaRaS
Senior List
It happens everywhere even within the AFL itself!! The less successful clubs have been getting handouts for years.
Holden and Ford is a bad example, they both get ridiculous handouts!!
Personally I think these other codes need to be in Melbourne and need all the support they can get. If AFL had sole reign in Melbourne i can guarantee you would be paying more to attend matches since there would be no other codes to compete against!!
more like 10-30 years of use...and thats if its just AFL, the bulldogs or cricket may use it as well.
because its size makes its size makes it unsuitable, just as unsuitable as olympic parkis for league. its far too big for a start up side.
if thats what the AFL ends up having to use then so be it, its just hypocritical to go into meltdown and whinge to your MP about the AFL getting money for an upgrade to a boutique stadium when you are getting 6 times that amount spent on a brand new one
http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/142
Telstra is a great example. They own most of the infrastructure and are the biggest and most popular telecommunications company so their rivals are given significant concessions so they have a marketplace presence.
Rupert Murdoch and his News Ltd are the biggest winners. Struck a brilliant deal with the Victorian Labour Gov't for a luxury mega buck (at last count it was $345 million and still going up) stadium for Newsltd Storm in exchange for favourable press coverage for teh gov't.
A Win win for Ruperts News Ltd and the state gov't, who gifted the stadium despite only Newsltd's Storm being the only franchise to actually sign up.
But a huge loss for most Victorian taxpayers - who watch their refer code at the MCG (total Govt funding $77 million (out of $460 million, the rest paid for by the AFL and MCC) for the Commonwealth Games upgrade, and Docklands (nil Gov't funding).
A Win win for Ruperts News Ltd and the state gov't, who gifted the stadium despite only Newsltd's Storm being the only franchise to actually sign up.
But a huge loss for most Victorian taxpayers - who watch their refer code at the MCG (total Govt funding $77 million (out of $460 million, the rest paid for by the AFL and MCC) for the Commonwealth Games upgrade, and Docklands (nil Gov't funding).
Thank Premier Jeff Kennett and AFL bosses Oakley and Jackson who mortgaged the future in the blunder dome.
They even agreed to block any competition for the dome for a good many years.
Current premiers and AFL bosses can only patch over the cracks
They even agreed to block any competition for the dome for a good many years.
Current premiers and AFL bosses can only patch over the cracks
JiMaRaS
Senior List
I never said it used to be expensive before, but it is starting to get a bit pricey. What im basically saying is that if there wasnt other codes to compete with the AFL, theres nothing stopping them from inflating their price to whatever they want!! You seriously think it wouldn't be more expensive if the other codes wern't in Melbourne?
Dude, Melbourne ticket prices are the cheapest in the country. Which is part of the reason why your 'stadium returns' are poorer than in other places.
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- #20
So let me get this straight. Because Australians invented a great code of football which is hugely popular and community owned, they have to subsidise other codes from overseas, which are privately owned (one of which is richer than many whole countries), so that those codes can get a "marketplace presence" in a competition which will see at least one of the codes ( not the super rich one) die out in a few years.
Lets not stop there. Why not take money away from Australian films, and use it to subsidise Hollywood, so that they can get a "leg up" in our "marketplace.
If any code deserves "a hand" in facing the onslaught of globalisation, it's ours, but we don't even get a level playing field.
While we are at it, why don't we cut benefits and Centrelink payments to all those low income households. You know what, bugger them, they can't support themselves - I don't care if they have to live at the local park...
Then we'll cut ALL government funding to AFL infrastructure - I wonder how long it will take before the stadiums are outdated and falling apart...
Then we'll cut ALL government funding to AFL infrastructure - I wonder how long it will take before the stadiums are outdated and falling apart...
It is laughable though that Victoria does not have a decent rectangular stadium.
It's not being used soley for thugby league. Thugby union and soccer will also be using it.
I can fully understand the Victorian government's rationale here.
Meanwhile Australian football gets shafted by the News Ltd anti AFL push (both online and behind the scenes as 50% co-owner of the NRL) which appears to have scared the NSW Premier into backing away from funding the redevelopment of the Sydney Showgrounds.
You can blame insular NRL News Ltd, clubs, fans, the lot.
You can blame insular NRL News Ltd, clubs, fans, the lot.
I must say i have no issue with the Melbourne rectangular stadium - it looks very impressive.
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