“Sydney FC unfazed by possible stadium delays Updated 2 hours ago As the main tenants of the football stadium that was built in 1988 for Australia's Bicentenary, the Sky Blues should be worried about the expected delays in the completion of the job. But talking to the club you sense that they feel everything is under control because Jubilee Stadium has been a blessing in disguise for the Sky Blues and if they are forced to keep playing in Kogarah longer than anticipated it would not be the end of the world ... far from it. Sydney were told that the new ground would be available in late 2021 but it now appears that the completion timeline is more likely to be early to middle 2022. That's almost an entire A-League competition gone which translates to a total of three full seasons of relocation. Sydney however are so comfortable with their arrangement with Jubilee Stadium that they would not be unhappy to play there for five seasons should further delays in the stadium's construction materialise. "Our arrangement with Jubilee Stadium is a year-to-year proposition and Kogarah would love to have us for as long as we could possibly stay," Sydney chef executive Danny Townsend said. "If the construction of the new stadium takes longer than expected we will continue to play at Kogarah because it is working for us. "The team loves playing there, the coach is happy and we are enjoying the interaction with the community and we don't see that changing. "So there is no rush for us although to be honest we cannot wait to get into our new stadium." But what about the fans? Will they put up with essentially not having a home ground for three or more seasons? Western Sydney Wanderers were hit by a considerable drop in gates when they were forced to play their home games elsewhere for three seasons while the old Pirtek Stadium was pulled down and replaced by the magnificent $360 million Bankwest Stadium. Sydney FC however do not see a parallel with their crosstown rivals' predicament. "The fans love it. Our membership is up, our retention rate is the highest in the club's history and the churn rate (non-renewals) is lower than it has ever been at our club," Townsend said. "Normally you get 15 per cent of members who do not renew ... this year we had a nine per cent churn. So we are happy and there is absolutely no cause for alarm." The demolition of Allianz Stadium, which hosted many FIFA World Cup qualifiers and A-League grand finals, has been the topic of a massive controversy since it was announced just before the NSW election in March that it would be pulled down and rebuilt at a cost of $730 million. An injunction was sought to stop the demolition of the ground but the wrecking ball went to work early this year before its developers Lendlease exited the scene, leaving the government with a massive hole in the ground and no contract in place for a builder to fill it. When the stadium will be finished is anyone's guess but the government's record in such issues is favourable. Bankwest Stadium was finished on time and on budget and Sydney are entitled to expect that the new 'Allianz' will follow suit. This could well be a classic case of wishful thinking but in any case the Sky Blues are happy where they are and are not under any pressure to go back 'home'.”

https://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/sydney-fc-unfazed-by-possible-stadium-delays

Good, they should just stay there as it is likely a far better financial proposition too.

Trying to make the SFS work with 40k is never going to be realistic on an ongoing basis, so maybe continued upgrades to Kogarah would be a better longer term outcome.

I can only imagine the terms of the tenant agreement will improve significantly for Sydney fc when they go back to the SFS. The move to Kogarah seems to be working out ok. They are the main tenant as well if I not mistaken. Time to turn the screws back onto the SCG trust me thinks.

Yeah, would be a great option if they were looking to become a St George team. 

“The NRL is yet to decide whether to take the grand final out of the Harbour City for the first time following delays in delivering Sydney’s new stadium network. Brisbane will host the 2021 grand final if the NSW Government can’t come up with a suitable compensation package.”

https://www.watoday.com.au/sport/nrl/perth-wins-bid-to-host-return-of-nrl-club-nines-20190818-p52i8z.html

The Victorian government should be looking to steal that.

A nice new big rectangular stadium would help.

They should definately try but the Queensland government would throw everything they have at it and the NRL won't be able to ignore the anger if Victoria gets it ahead of an actual Rugby League state. 

Wasn’t there talk of Auckland at one point? 
But yeah I can’t imagine it not being Brisbane.

True, but Victoria does throw the kitchen sink at getting events like this (other than building a suitable venue).

The permanent home of the neutral leg of the State of Origin should also be a goal.

#MCG100K

That will be the sales pitch.

Brisbane deserves it if Sydney can't get their act together.

Melbourne can get stuffed. 

don't you think its strange that they host a state of orgin event between NSW and QLD outside of NSW and QLD? I really couldn't give a stuff, but its still strange to me. 

Firstly, it has a bit of novelty appeal to the casual observer. It's a big event and often delivers on entertainment value so from that perspective it kinda makes sense. There are also people who may have grown up in NSW or QLD, but have since moved interstate but still very much follow the sport. Having the event interstate gives those fans an opportunity to see the event live. At the end of the day, if it sells tickets, why not. 

Three of the four biggest ever State of Origin crowds were at the MCG, so that says it all I guess.

They even played a leg in Los Angeles in 1987. Perth hosted for the first time this year, while Adelaide Oval gets a go next year. Melbourne has hosted eight times between the MCG, Docklands and once at Olympic Park. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_of_Origin_series#Venues

Well given that after they reconfigured the Olympic stadium in Sydney in 2003 to 80 odd it makes sense that a stadium bigger would hold the ground record.

State of Origin at Homebush in Sydney has been at capacity many, many times.  Who knows how many they would've gotten if the stadium was bigger.

As for playing a game in Victoria or WA or where ever as a New South Welshman let me tell you that is fucked.  Way to shit all over your supporters.  9 times out of 10 it's NSW giving away a game too.  At least Qld has the kahunas to tell them to piss off.

Are you saying that you have to live in NSW to be a NSW supporter? What about people that have moved interstate for work, family, etc, but still love the sport and want to watch the game. I work with people that originated from Sydney and Brisbane, and they all enjoy the rivalry and usually go to the game when it's played in Melbourne. If anything by moving the game interstate they are showing even more support for their supporters.

Nope.  But if you want to watch it buy a ticket and fly up to Sydney or Brisbane.

What next?  Socceroo matches against Qatar in Singapore because there's 200 thousand expats there?

How about the poor bastards that go every week and live and breathe it and when the big game is on it's 'sorry mate, we need to consider the metrics'.

The ARU is even worse when it comes to shopping out games to cities where just about no one even plays the game.  

I think you'll find the correct fact is 9 times out of 10 you pull stats out your-



I do agree with you and think it is a bit BS, but to think it's not fair on both sides, that's where Michael Caton would step in and tell you something.

Muz,  if they want games played in other cities in Australia the Tests can fill that bill not the State of Origin games.

It's almost as if the competition is based on the state that you originate from, rather than the state that you currently live in at the present moment. You really think there's no NSW or QLD people in Victoria, or that thousands of NSW and QLD people wouldn't enjoy the trip to Melbourne?

In a three game comp it seems to make pretty good sense to me to have that third game on neutral ground in Melbourne.

I literally know nothing at all about rugby league, mind you.

It's the only game for which a frontal lobotomy is a pre requisite for a pro career.

That's all you need to know.

Or to be a fan, from what I've seen lol

https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/nsw-governments-sydney-football-stadium-renovation-rescue-blows-out-by-100m/news-story/219691bd7a745c612981a88b6067e451

They're gonna have NRL grand finals there?

Reading between the lines I guess that means that'll be while Homebush is taking it's turn to get redeveloped.

At this rate I don't see how they'll get that ready by the 2023 WWC.

Should always have been a refurb after Stadium Australia (aka ANZ) was refurbed or rebuilt.
So the Parrot just cost the people of NSW an extra $100m.

Looks like Sydney FC is at Kogarah/Leichhardt for another 3 years at least.  

if all goes well kogarah should let Sydney fc stay and allow the option for them to buy the stadium

lol

Told of the government's position, Sydney FC chief executive Danny Townsend said the A-League football club would not have supported the stadium rebuild had the club known the two-mode function to accommodate smaller crowds would not be a feature of the new stadium in Sydney's eastern suburbs. "Rebuilding a stadium of very similar size, with no different configuration would not have been something that we would have supported," he said. "We supported a project that had a two-mode system, that's what was sold to us, that's what got us really behind it and got us really excited about what our future home looked like." During preliminary stages of stadium planning, tenants were told there would be funding for an LED curtain which would enable the top tier of the stadium to be closed off during events that attracted smaller crowds. The new stadium will hold 45,000 spectators, with Sydney FC games averaging about 15,000. The government did not include funding for the curtain in the stadium's final budget, which it announced this month had blown out by $99m. Mr Townsend said it sounded as if the government had "moved on" from the curtain, which was "the single most important thing" for Sydney FC when agreeing to the rebuild. "I can't put it more clearly than that," Mr Townsend said. "We were confident that the government and the [SCG] Trust would deliver on that. At the end of the day, it's their facility, they own it, we're a tenant and we pay rent, that's how it works and we would like it to be the best possible experience for our fans once it opens. "We've been led to believe all along that it was always part of the plan and may not have been funded in this first envelope, but there was a commitment to finding a solution."

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/stadium-tenant-hits-out-as-sports-minister-confirms-government-won-t-pay-for-curtain-20191230-p53nnw.html

good job lol

so you rejected ANZ rebuild which FFA backed for a maybe?

no contract.... you were led to believe 

top notch