Cricket Victoria chief executive Nick Cummins still remembers the excitement when he first sat in the MCG’s brand-new 45,000-capacity Great Southern Stand just over 30 years ago.
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he → remember → Stand
“At the time, it was like a spaceship,” he said.
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he → say → spaceship
“It was amazing that you could have such a big stand with so much seating and great sight lines … compared to somewhere like Victoria Park, where you had to stand on two cans so you could see over the tall person in front of you.”
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you → have → you
Since renamed in honour of Victoria’s legendary spin bowler, the Shane Warne Stand still holds a special place in Melburnians’ hearts.
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Stand → rename → hearts
But in terms of consumer experience, in the age where anyone can watch almost any sport live from the comfort of their own home, Cummins said the MCG was at risk of falling behind.
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MCG → watch → risk
As LA Rams president Kevin Demoff said last month, when comparing their shiny home ground, SoFi Stadium, with the Melbourne venue that hosted the first NFL match Down Under: “We play in the world’s greatest modern stadium … the MCG can be the greatest old stadium.”
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MCG → say → stadium
Cummins said the MCG was catering predominantly for die-hard “sit down, sit still, watch the game” fans and failing to deliver for those who viewed sport more as a social experience – a segment of the market that is increasingly important for full-day events, such as Test cricket, to remain relevant and engaging.
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events → say → cricket
So, how do Melbourne’s major sporting arenas compare with those around the country, and what do they need to change to remain competitive in the future?
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they → compare → future
And how can Melbourne retain its much-cited status as the sports – and arts – capital of Australia?
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Melbourne → retain → Australia
Over the coming days, we are taking an in-depth look at Melbourne’s sport and the arts.
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we → come → sport
The theme is one of the key pillars of Melbourne Assembly, a civic forum The Age is hosting later this month, bringing together industry leaders, key decision-makers and the community to shape the city’s future.
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Age → host → future
Cummins cites interstate and American sports venues as examples of how the MCG could evolve.
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MCG → cite → examples
“A lot of American stadiums now have these open patios where you can have almost like a barbecue deck or party deck,” the Cricket Victoria boss said.
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boss → have → deck
“At the AT&T Stadium where the Dallas Cowboys play, there’s a bar just below ground level ... and the players actually run through the bar to go onto the ground, and people will pay a lot of money just to be part of that.
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people → play → that
“[In Australia] other states are building bigger venues … [with] superior facilities, including corporate hospitality, so although they might not hold as many people, the sports can make more money because they can get a more corporate return.
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they → build → return
“We assume as Victorians that we’re entitled to these major sporting events …
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we → assume → events
But other state governments are getting quite bullish in terms of challenging Victoria for that content.”
The MCG, the jewel in Melbourne’s crown, has evolved significantly over its 173 years, and its future is inextricably linked to the city’s reputation as Australia’s sporting capital.
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future → get → capital
Alongside a highly competitive financial bid, the stadium was a key reason the NFL chose Victoria to host its Australian debut.
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NFL → choose → debut
But while it retains the title of the largest stadium in the southern hemisphere, sports venues in other states have leapfrogged it in terms of consumer experience.
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venues → retain → experience
Perth’s Optus Stadium, which opened in 2018, is widely regarded as Australia’s most forward-leaning stadium.
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which → open → stadium
Among the first fully LED stadiums in the world, it features two 340-square-metre “super screens”, a light-up halo roof, adaptable seating configurations, and several open-air, pitch-facing terraces.
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it → feature → screens
Other venues are on the horizon in Hobart and Brisbane, as well as major upgrades to the Queensland capital’s Suncorp Stadium, which will include Australia’s first 360-degree wrap-around LED ribbon screen, a “halo board” suspended from the stadium roof.
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which → include → roof
According to Melbourne-based venue-technology and intelligence firm PMY Group – one of the companies consulting on an MCG redevelopment business case, co-funded by the state government and the Melbourne Cricket Club – this is just the tip of the iceberg.
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this → accord → iceberg
Chief executive Paul Yeomans said several stadiums overseas were completely rethinking the fan experience.
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stadiums → say → experience
At Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, a new NBA stadium where PMY led the technology design, fans can earn spendable loyalty points and prizes by cheering louder for the LA Clippers, with technology able to measure decibels down to a single seat.
“Going to sports games in the future will be a completely personalised, frictionless experience.
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Going → lead → future
Physical gates may be a thing of the past and queuing hopefully will be long gone.
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queuing → go → past
Venues will be able to remember who are you, where you like to sit, what you like to eat, and how you like to experience the action, and will customise their value proposition accordingly,” he said.
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he → remember → proposition
Melbourne’s sports precinct through the years
“They will also all be multi-use, with more collaboration between sports codes, music and entertainment to bring holistic ‘sportainment’ to life.
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They → bring → life
The goal is really to sweat these infrastructure assets to maximise return on investment, so working out how to use them 365 days a year.
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goal → sweat → days
How the MCG can be redeveloped to include “the contemporary facilities that athletes and spectators require” will be assessed as part of the business case, according to Development Victoria, a government planning agency.
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athletes → redevelop → Victoria
It is due to be finalised next year, with any eventual works – including to the Shane Warne Stand – expected to take at least a decade.
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works → finalise → decade
In the future, Yeomans said stadiums would be less like “colosseums” and more integrated with the surrounding area and businesses.
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stadiums → say → area
He said the new stadium being built in Brisbane’s Victoria Park for the 2032 Olympics was a good example of this approach, as the parkland provided a natural precinct to spread out events.
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parkland → say → events
Across the train tracks from the MCG, Yeomans said a number of these ideas were also being embraced.
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number → say → ideas
He said Melbourne Park was leading the way in its use of data to optimise the fan experience by better understanding the different demographics moving through the precinct, and tailoring its experience, food and beverage offerings, activations and advertising accordingly – a bit like a real-life version of social media algorithms.
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Park → say → algorithms
The precinct, which has been redeveloped with a $1 billion state funding injection since 2010, is best known as the home of the Australian Open, and is packed with tennis fans throughout January.
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which → redevelop → January
Melbourne Park chief executive John Harnden has been tasked with planning how to make the most of the space the other 11 months of the year.
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Harnden → task → year
While Tennis Australia has long pushed for a more permanent footprint, Harnden – a panellist at Melbourne Assembly, of which Melbourne Park is a major partner – said he did not want the precinct to be “a one-trick pony”, and all venues had been designed to accommodate a range of uses and fans.
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venues → push → uses
But the precinct has its own challenges.
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precinct → have → challenges
While it might have the modern edge on the MCG, and be only a stone’s throw away, the rail infrastructure between them have left it isolated, with minimal natural foot traffic.
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infrastructure → have → traffic
…and 29 more, not listed.
The Aporia
