Why do WA and SA only have one AFL stadium each?

[Black Haze]

I've been curious about this for years and surprisingly haven't seen any topics on here about it, because every other state in Australia has multiple stadiums for AFL.

Tasmania has two AFL stadiums despite not having an AFL side, with talks of a third stadium being built for AFL.

Northern Territory has two AFL stadiums despite not having an AFL side, and if TAS gets its own side, I won't be surprised if the NT bid to have their own side and build another AFL stadium.

Queensland has four AFL stadiums despite being a rugby state, with the Lions and Suns both having their own stadium even though WA and SA sides both have to share one stadium between two sides.

New South Wales has three AFL stadiums despite being a rugby state, and the ACT has its own stadium too despite not having an AFL side. Swans and Giants both have a stadium to themselves like the two QLD sides.

Victoria has four AFL stadiums despite having 10 teams, and there really should be more AFL stadiums given Geelong are the only side who have a stadium to themselves, while the other nine sides have to share two stadiums, but that's a topic for another thread.

Anyway, my question is why is there only one AFL stadium in WA and only one AFL stadium in SA?

Isn't it unfair that Eagles/Dockers and Crows/Power have to share a stadium while Lions/Suns and Swans/Giants all have stadiums to themselves with no co tenants?

Also, I find it odd that WA and SA despite being strong Aussie Rules states only have one AFL stadium each, while NSW and QLD have multiple stadiums for AFL despite being rugby states.

 

[parano1a]

Perth and Adelaide are smaller cities and cover less geographic spread than Greater Melbourne, Greater Sydney or SEQ (Brisbane/Gold Coast).
Tasmania on the other hand has two major cities, Hobart and Launceston on opposite sides of the state. Same goes for NT, there's a very long distance between Darwin and Alice.
It wouldn't make sense financially or logistically to build two separate stadiums for the SA/ WA clubs.

 

[Black Haze]

Perth and Adelaide are smaller cities and cover less geographic spread than Greater Melbourne, Greater Sydney or SEQ (Brisbane/Gold Coast).
Tasmania on the other hand has two major cities, Hobart and Launceston on opposite sides of the state.
It wouldn't make sense financially or logistically to build two separate stadiums for the SA/ WA clubs.

Perth isn't much smaller than Brisbane, and Queensland has stadiums in Cairns, Townsville, Brisbane and Gold Coast.

WA is the largest state by size as well so it'd make sense to play games in Broome would it not? Broome is a tropical town like Cairns and Townsville.

 

[kranger]

Anyway, my question is why is there only one AFL stadium in WA and only one AFL stadium in SA?

Multiple reasons.

Both states only have 1 big city. No other city is trying to host AFL games, and therefore needs to build an appropriate stadium.

By putting all the money into one stadium each, they are possibly the two best AFL stadiums in the world. MCG is biggest but not best. If they had to share the money out to a second stadium each, and with half the number of events, the stadiums would not be as good.

Isn't it unfair that Eagles/Dockers and Crows/Power have to share a stadium while Lions/Suns and Swans/Giants all have stadiums to themselves with no co tenants?

No, it’s not unfair.

Brisbane and Gold Coast are two different cities. Both teams have a stadium in their home city.

Sydney is a different kettle of fish, and have twice WA’s population and three times SA’s population.

Of Sydney’s stadiums, Homebush is likely to be redeveloped so it is a rectangle field only, one day soon. With GWS playing in what is the geographic centre of Sydney, as it is closer to their target market. Whilst the Swans play in the business/cultural centre of Sydney.

 

[Magma]

because we only have 1 game a week, you hardly need two.

 

[Black Haze]

because we only have 1 game a week, you hardly need two.

There's only one game a week in NSW and QLD yet all the clubs in those states have their own stadium.

 

[Magma]

There's only one game a week in NSW and QLD yet all the clubs in those states have their own stadium.

but they also have stuff like rugby

 

[Black Haze]

but they also have stuff like rugby

Rugby is big in WA and SA is it not? I watched state of origin games played at Perth Stadium and Adelaide Oval, obviously AFL is number 1 in both states I'm just pointing out rugby is big too.

 

[Magma]

Rugby is big in WA and SA is it not? I watched state of origin games played at Perth Stadium and Adelaide Oval, obviously AFL is number 1 in both states I'm just pointing out rugby is big too.

there is no sa rugby team so whatever crows/port game is on that week is really the only major sport going on that needs a stadium

 

[Schneebly11]

The issue is WA and SA have almost all their population centered in one city each. Tasmania is split between North and South so Launceston and Hobart get a small stadium each. NT’s two stadiums are tiny (7k capacity in Alice Springs).

Now potentially there are plenty of grounds AFL could be played on in WA and SA.

WA has Optus with 61k, Steel Blue (Bassendean) Oval at 22k, WACA at 20k, Joondalup at 12k, East Freo and Freo Ovals at 10k, Hands Park in Bunno at 10k, Leederville Oval at 10k, Rushton Park on Mandurah at 9k and Albany Oval at 8k.

All of which have a larger capacity than the smallest 2022 AFL venue, TIO in Alice at 7,000.

Obviously Optus is a far more superior location than any of the city alternatives, and the AFL hasn’t bothered to play a regular season match at any of the country ovals, except for some pre season games.

There’s obviously no financial incentive for the AFL or clubs to do so. It’s not really an issue with the grounds themselves.

 

[kranger]

It does pose the question, if there was some sort of incident at Optus Stadium or Adelaide Oval, that rendered them unable to host AFL games, what is the contingency plan?

As any other venue is not up to scratch. Less than half the capacity as the biggest, and no where near the same level of corporate facilities.

 

[footyfan1978]

I hope you are only 15 years old as anyone older should already know these things.
WA had WACA and Subiaco.
They chose to eventually settle on one stadium and even build the new one.
SA had Football Park and Adelaide Oval.
They also decided they would settle on one and upgrade Adelaide Oval.
It is nothing new in league history.
Plenty of times clubs been co-tenants at one stadium
Melbourne and Richmond shared the one home ground when I was a kid.
Carlton and Hawthorn shared Princes Park in 70's and 80's.
Saints and Hawks later at Waverley Park etc etc.

 

[parano1a]

WA is the largest state by size as well so it'd make sense to play games in Broome would it not? Broome is a tropical town like Cairns and Townsville.

In addition to being geographically remote from any capital city, Broome only has a population of around 20k (Compared to Townsville 200k and Cairns 170k).

It would make more sense to play a game in Tokyo or Singapore than Broome.

 

[Scotland]

WA still has the WACA. It was only ever used for AFL footy because Subiaco didn't have lights until 2000.

We have a 60,000 seat oval, a 20,000 seat rectangle, a 15,000 seat arena, a second test cricket standard oval and a bunch of WAFL standard ovals. What more do we need?

WA has no real relevance to Tassie or Qld because there are no population centres outside Perth warranting major sporting infrastructure. Mandurah has Rushton Park, Bunbury has Hands Oval etc. If we had a 60,000 seat WC ground and a 60,000 seat Freo ground we'd get the same crowds we do now. WC are arguably the financially strongest club in the comp and financing something like Optus Stadium is beyond our capacity.

 

[terrybull]

Shouldn’t SA and WA have four teams each considering they are major footy states only second to Victoria?

SA

Port Adelaide Power
Norwood Redlegs
Sturt Bluebirds
Adelaide Crows representing the rest

WA

East Perth Royal
Subiaco Cougars
Fremantle Dockers representing the Fremantle area
West Coast Eagles representing the rest

 

[Altum Volantes]

Did chortle at Broome.

Perth and Broome are quite similar in that they are both incredibly isolated from other centres of population.

The advantage of basing clubs and playing games in Perth is that despite it’s relative isolation from the rest of Australia, people do actually live there - around 2 million or so.

The disadvantage of playing games out of Broome (well, one of them), would be that not only is it incredibly far from basically everywhere, it lacks the highly redeeming feature of a population that would not rely on the entire town attending each game to crack 20k through the gate.

 

[NetworkNerd]

What defines an AFL stadium though? There isn't much difference if any, in capacity between the larger SANFL/WAFL grounds and York Park and that's before upgrades.

If SA get another team and it's Central Districts they would prob play out of an upgraded Elizabeth/Alice Springs I'd imagine.

The 2 WA teams have lots of members but it would be cool for Freo to play a few home games at East Fremantle oval

 

[jackster83]

It does pose the question, if there was some sort of incident at Optus Stadium or Adelaide Oval, that rendered them unable to host AFL games, what is the contingency plan?

As any other venue is not up to scratch. Less than half the capacity as the biggest, and no where near the same level of corporate facilities.

Similar to when Christchurch had their stadium destroyed I guess.

We'd play games in Victoria (either Marvel or Ballarat) for a period until they could get an SANFL ground up to scratch.

 

[Dangerousfield]

Close the thread, it's the high of idiocy

 

[footyfan1978]

I hope you are only 15 years old as anyone older should already know these things.
WA had WACA and Subiaco.
They chose to eventually settle on one stadium and even build the new one.
SA had Football Park and Adelaide Oval.
They also decided they would settle on one and upgrade Adelaide Oval.
It is nothing new in league history.
Plenty of times clubs been co-tenants at one stadium
Melbourne and Richmond shared the one home ground when I was a kid.
Carlton and Hawthorn shared Princes Park in 70's and 80's.
Saints and Hawks later at Waverley Park etc etc.

Just on this, if I am correct. Carlton, Hawthorn and Fitzroy were all co-tenants at Princes Park in 1986 and ended up top three teams at end of the season. I cannot remember how three clubs managed to play their home games there over only 22 rounds.
Can only assume every time there was a public holiday Princes Park had a match there on the Saturday and also public holiday in same round as clearly two teams cannot play a homeground there in the same round back then in a normal round when most matches were played on a Saturday and Sunday matches were not really a thing in Victoria.

Edit: To follow up checked on 1986 season and Fitzroy were not a co-tenant in that season. It 1987 I thinking of. The next season.
A check on some rounds and see it that season Carlton played home match at mcg v Collingwood on Sunday at one weekend whilst Hawks on Saturday at Princes Park the day before so they managed to fit them all in via different means in 1987 when Sunday football in Victoria opened up a little more than earlier in 80's when it very very rare and most matches in Victoria were on Saturday.

 

[footyfan1978]

Just on this, if I am correct. Carlton, Hawthorn and Fitzroy were all co-tenants at Princes Park in 1986 and ended up top three teams at end of the season. I cannot remember how three clubs managed to play their home games there over only 22 rounds.
Can only assume every time there was a public holiday Princes Park had a match there on the Saturday and also public holiday in same round as clearly two teams cannot play a homeground there in the same round back then in a normal round when most matches were played on a Saturday and Sunday matches were not really a thing in Victoria.

Actually I think i have season wrong as Fitzroy look to have played most of their home games at Victoria Park in 1986 when check AFL tables site
Round 6 home match at Princes Park v Richmond but others look at Victoria Park after that.

 

[Rockford]

There is more than one AFL stadium in each of WA and SA though. East and South Fremantle both have their own ovals and have a capacity of around 20,000 each. There's a WAFL oval in Leederville that Subiaco share now with East Perth and that would be higher than 20,000 if I had to guess. Peel, Claremont both have ~10,000 capacity stadiums. Bassendean oval is pretty big, would be over 20k. Lathlain Park where West Coast train would be over 20k as well maybe. There'll be others that I'm missing.

These other clubs (GWS and Suns) ended up with their own stadiums as they didn't need the capacity that Fremantle and Port both required when they joined the comp.. if the expectation was that Freo would only get ~10k every week to games then they'd have done a re-development at Fremantle Oval like they did at Carrara (which otherwise was used for NRL). When Fremantle did enter the competition there was a lot of debate as to whether they should develop South Fremantle's oval or have them play out of Subi.

 

[Gough]

there is no sa rugby team so whatever crows/port game is on that week is really the only major sport going on that needs a stadium

If we weren't a rugby graveyard there's be more push for an international standard rectangular stadium but as it stands we can just tinker around the edges of Hindmarsh Stadium and get away with it.

 

[Van_Dyke]

Did chortle at Broome.

Perth and Broome are quite similar in that they are both incredibly isolated from other centres of population.

The advantage of basing clubs and playing games in Perth is that despite it’s relative isolation from the rest of Australia, people do actually live there - around 2 million or so.

The disadvantage of playing games out of Broome (well, one of them), would be that not only is it incredibly far from basically everywhere, it lacks the highly redeeming feature of a population that would not rely on the entire town attending each game to crack 20k through the gate.

don't think broome's ever got a wafl game played up there when they've gone to country areas, let alone an afl one.

 

[kranger]

There is more than one AFL stadium in each of WA and SA though.

There's a WAFL oval in Leederville that Subiaco share now with East Perth and that would be higher than 20,000 if I had to guess.

The WAFL grand final is being held at Leederville Oval this year, as Optus Stadium is out of action for the cricket.

The capacity at Leederville Oval has been said to be about 10,000, which has upset a few since some of the other venues have larger capacities, and the GF draws in the 20,000’s.

Leederville was chosen because of it’s centrality and the local government offered to close surrounding streets down the main street towards the station, which would become a fan zone.l, and activate the restaurants.