“It’s not just about the Olympics, it’s about what Brisbane needs...”: Sports Minister speaks on the state of stadium infrastructure in Queensland

Queensland’s Sport Minister Tim Mander has given detail into the issues that the government is facing with its existing stadia infrastructure.

Mander commented on the difficulties that lay at the government’s feet regarding the attempt to upgrade existing stadium infrastructure within the state to keep up with other states.

This comes after yesterday’s announcement that Queensland’s biggest capacity stadium in Suncorp Stadium will only be hosting six pool games, two round of sixteen games and two quarter finals for the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

Alongside this, there is continued pressure surrounding the Gabba’s viability for the 2032 Olympics and the alternative options available including the proposed 80,000-seat stadium at Victoria Park.

“It’s not just about the Olympics, it’s what Brisbane needs as a growing city to cater for the future,” Mander said.

“The challenge now becomes that you’ve got the stadiums that are being built around the nation, the very classic one being Perth (Optus Stadium) that now takes 65,000 and by all reports, it’s a beauty.

“At the same time, they've got to balance how much that is going to cost and you don’t have to read too much at the moment to realise some of the pressure that were under with the cost of a whole range of different projects that are not associated with sport.

“Doesn’t mean we can’t do those things; it just means we have to make smart decisions and make sure that we have the facilities that can meet our needs for the future.”

This pressure surrounding the Gabba’s ability to secure major events comes about as the Queensland Government undergoes a 100-day infrastructure review for the Olympic Games.

Mander would cite the recent decision by Cricket Australia to move the Gabba from its traditional slot as the first Test of the Ashes to the third Test for the first time since 1982 as an example of some of the Gabba’s flaws.

“We need to make sure that we are competitors, that’s been one of the problems with the Gabba with the Ashes test,” he added.

“(We’re) losing tradition (with) Brisbane and the first Test. And that hurts not to have that as somebody who has been used to that all my life as a cricket lover.

“So, there are the type of things that they (infrastructure review committee) are taking into consideration.”

While the Queensland Government are still awaiting the results of the infrastructure review, the Brisbane Lions and Queensland Cricket who are the main tenants of the Gabba has been supportive of the plan to demolish the stadium and then move over to the proposed $3.4 billion Victoria Park development.

The 100-day review by the Queensland Government is expected to provide its result in early March.