Brisbane CEO Greg Swann admits that the pending Gabba redevelopment is going to cause some pain for the Lions.
As things stand, the Gabba will be demolished in 2025 with construction on a new $2.6 billion stadium set to take place between 2026 and 2030 ahead of the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.
The Lions are yet to lock in their home venue across that period, with their home base of Springfield or the Brisbane Showgrounds both options.
While they’re both viable options, both venues would hold between 20,000-24,000 spectators which will be far less than the club’s expected membership base of more than 60,000 by the time 2026 rolls around.
Swann says the Lions are now hoping to get a commitment from the Queensland Government on what venue they’ll use to give their fans some idea of where the Lions will call home for four seasons.
“We have two more seasons at the Gabba then it gets bowled over,” Swann told SEN’s Whateley.
“We are in discussions at the moment with the government about where we play in the interim.
“It’s going to be a four-year hiatus. That’s a long time to be out of mainstream grounds. No matter where we go, the ground is only going to hold low 20,000s.
“We are going to get a membership of 60,000 plus, so we have some challenges in that space.
“The code is flying, we had seven sellouts last season. Our membership is up 25 per cent. The upside is you turn into a brand new 55,000-seat stadium. We fill it pretty regularly and pretty easily.
“But it’s going to create some pain on the way through. Now the government has made a commitment about the Gabba, we are hoping we can get a commitment on where we are going to play.”
Given the Lions won’t be getting full value from their home games due to reduced capacity, Swann confirmed that the club is considering offers to sell one or two home games elsewhere each year from 2026 to 2029.
The CEO says both Perth’s Optus Stadium and Melbourne’s MCG are options they could pursue.
“We’ve spoken about that (selling home games),” Swann said.
“There are some offers for us to maybe play one or two games elsewhere.
“We might take it to Perth or play it at the MCG. I don’t know, but there are some options. There is a lot happening in that space, but we haven’t bedded anything down.”
The Lions will continue playing home games at the Gabba in the 2024 and 2025 seasons.
They begin their 2024 campaign with an Opening Round clash against Carlton at the venue on Friday, March 8.
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