Latest news with #VenuesNSW
The Age
24-07-2025
- Sport
- The Age
Maradona played there. Now Sydney's iconic stadium may lose its World Cup qualifiers
Football Australia has threatened to take clutch World Cup and Asian Cup qualifiers away from Sydney's Allianz Stadium due to issues with the surface and congested schedule at the $828 million venue. Newly released documents reveal a schism between the game's governing body and Venues NSW about the use of the rebuilt stadium, which only reopened three years ago but has been plagued by turf and drainage issues. Formerly known as the Sydney Football Stadium, Allianz has a long history of hosting major Socceroos and Matildas matches, among them the World Cup qualifier against Argentina in 1993 when Diego Maradona led the South American team to a first-leg draw before Australian hearts were broken in Buenos Aires. But FA warned in an email after the Socceroos' World Cup Asian group stage qualifying game against Indonesia in March that its men's and women's national teams may abandon the 42,500-capacity ground if it could not be closed off in the two weeks before their matches. 'Moving forward, Football Australia would be hesitant to book Allianz Stadium for high-stakes international fixtures unless greater assurance is provided around pitch protection, turf preparation windows, and warm-up zone quality,' FA chief corporate affairs officer Peter Filopoulos wrote to Venues NSW general manager for event acquisition Stephen Saunders on March 26. Filopoulos said players had reported the Allianz surface was 'the worst pitch they've played on in some time', describing it as well below international standard. He even suggested it cost the Socceroos winning by more than the 5-1 margin they did against Indonesia, 'which could be crucial given the tightness of our qualification group'. FA chief executive James Johnson, who has since left the role, followed up with an email to Venues NSW chief Kerrie Mather on April 17, saying the conditions hadn't improved when the Matildas played at Allianz Stadium on April 4 and football authorities had 'significant concerns'. Johnson told Mather the goal conceded by the Socceroos against Indonesia was 'directly influenced by an uneven bounce, undermining the integrity of play', while also reporting safety concerns from players' slippage, an 'unacceptable' strip of ready-to-play turf in a goalmouth, and below-standard warm-up areas.
Sydney Morning Herald
24-07-2025
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
Maradona played there. Now Sydney's iconic stadium may lose its World Cup qualifiers
Football Australia has threatened to take clutch World Cup and Asian Cup qualifiers away from Sydney's Allianz Stadium due to issues with the surface and congested schedule at the $828 million venue. Newly released documents reveal a schism between the game's governing body and Venues NSW about the use of the rebuilt stadium, which only reopened three years ago but has been plagued by turf and drainage issues. Formerly known as the Sydney Football Stadium, Allianz has a long history of hosting major Socceroos and Matildas matches, among them the World Cup qualifier against Argentina in 1993 when Diego Maradona led the South American team to a first-leg draw before Australian hearts were broken in Buenos Aires. But FA warned in an email after the Socceroos' World Cup Asian group stage qualifying game against Indonesia in March that its men's and women's national teams may abandon the 42,500-capacity ground if it could not be closed off in the two weeks before their matches. 'Moving forward, Football Australia would be hesitant to book Allianz Stadium for high-stakes international fixtures unless greater assurance is provided around pitch protection, turf preparation windows, and warm-up zone quality,' FA chief corporate affairs officer Peter Filopoulos wrote to Venues NSW general manager for event acquisition Stephen Saunders on March 26. Filopoulos said players had reported the Allianz surface was 'the worst pitch they've played on in some time', describing it as well below international standard. He even suggested it cost the Socceroos winning by more than the 5-1 margin they did against Indonesia, 'which could be crucial given the tightness of our qualification group'. FA chief executive James Johnson, who has since left the role, followed up with an email to Venues NSW chief Kerrie Mather on April 17, saying the conditions hadn't improved when the Matildas played at Allianz Stadium on April 4 and football authorities had 'significant concerns'. Johnson told Mather the goal conceded by the Socceroos against Indonesia was 'directly influenced by an uneven bounce, undermining the integrity of play', while also reporting safety concerns from players' slippage, an 'unacceptable' strip of ready-to-play turf in a goalmouth, and below-standard warm-up areas.
Daily Mail
03-07-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Brand-new $828million footy stadium is facing being shut down for SIX WEEKS due to shocking problem
Allianz Stadium officials have told Sydney FC to prepare for the prospect of the $828million venue being unavailable for part of the summer if a report calls for a significant fix to drainage issues. Less than three years after the opening of Australia's most expensive rectangular stadium build, an investigation is continuing into repeated problems with the field. Venues NSW, who operate the ground, expect to have the outcome of that report by the end of this month. Multiple scenarios are being worked through for the potential fix of the issue, as officials attempt to identify at which layer of the turf build the problem exists. The most extreme scenario would be if the issue was found to exist in the stadium's underground drainage. It could take at least six weeks to rebuild the profile of the drain and turf. 'The comprehensive review into the playing surface and drainage system at Allianz Stadium is expected to be finalised later this month,' a Venues NSW spokesperson said. 'As we are awaiting the results of the investigation, no decision has been made on what remediation works are required.' It's understood that Sydney FC would most likely play matches at Leichhardt Oval if Allianz was to become unavailable. That would create significant commercial hurdles. The Sky Blues are already unable to use Allianz when it is required for major concerts, with two scheduled for mid-December. The situation comes as the playing surface at the adjacent SCG, also managed by Venues NSW, was slammed after last week's AFL match between Sydney and the Western Bulldogs. Allianz Stadium only re-opened in September 2022, but eyebrows were raised last May when large puddles were on the surface for a Waratahs-Brumbies rugby match. Clint Gutherson then described the water-logged field as one of the worst he had ever played on after an NRL fixture in August, prompting a review. After initially being relaid during the 2023-24 summer, new turf was again put down last summer before more drainage issues in the opening round of the NRL. Further work was completed to stitch artificial grass into the turf to aid with drainage, before water pooling returned amid heavy rain at women's State of Origin in May. It's understood previous testing on the turf had shown the presence of silt, a granular material often found in rivers which can reduce water flow and impacts drainage. The turf farm used to supply the surface for Allianz Stadium and most Venues NSW grounds is based close to the Hawkesbury River. That river flooded multiple times in the months before the 2022 install. Turf from the same suppliers and farm has been used to re-lay other stadiums since then, without the same drainage issues. The review comes as Independent MP Mark Latham has raised a litany of questions regarding the Allianz Stadium, Venues NSW and the surface in NSW Parliament over the past month.
The Age
29-06-2025
- Sport
- The Age
‘As bad as I've seen': AFL demands an explanation for ‘unacceptable' SCG surface
'There were no concerns at all,' Lewis said. 'The boys spoke to the grounds manager before the match, and there were no concerns. The Swans have trained on the field this week, and there haven't been any concerns at all. 'We just think it's the heavy dew that has been coming in on the last couple of nights, keeping the top of that surface wetter than we would like.' Dillon was on the phone first thing Saturday morning seeking an explanation for the substandard surface, speaking with the chair of Venues NSW David Gallop, which runs the SCG. The AFL will also send a turf expert to Sydney this week to ensure another surface debacle does not unfold for the Swans' coming clash against Fremantle on Sunday, July 6. Lewis said he was confident the ground would be ready for that match, despite the forecast for up to 172 millimetres of rain in the next seven days. But Dean Cox's men may have to train elsewhere. 'We might have to remove all activities until the next game just so we can get into that northern end, try and get some more seed into it, some heat mats down and some grow lights so we're all ready to go for the next game,' Lewis said. 'We'll do all our best this week. We'll make sure we get the field as best we can for the next game.' One heart-stopping moment happened during the third term when Bulldog star Bailey Williams's legs buckled awkwardly on the shifting ground as he chased after the ball. Another glaring example happened when speedster Nick Blakey slipped over as he tried to take off on a customary run at a crucial stage of the last quarter. The Bulldogs won a tense contest by nine points to mark captain Marcus Bontempelli's 250th game. Brownlow medallist and geelong premiership star Jimmy Bartel slammed the surface as unacceptable. 'I've genuinely got concern,' he told 3AW after the match. 'When I saw Bailey Williams charging out for the footy and went to change direction and [slipped], that had ACL written all over it. 'As we know, it would have to take a star to get hurt to do anything. 'It shouldn't matter who it is but could you only imagine of Isaac Heeney or Chad Warner or [Sam] Darcy or Bont [Marcus Bontempelli] went down with an injury? What would we be saying? 'There's no way you could tick that off [the surface]. Guys have got studded footwear in and if they decided to change direction, they were gone.' Bartel said the clubs and the AFL 'got lucky' that no player suffered a serious injury. Triple premiership Lion Jonathan Brown questioned whether the Friday night match should have been allowed to go ahead. 'This is as bad as I have seen in years,' Brown told Fox Footy. 'I remember playing on the early [Marvel Stadium] surface, and that was a sandpit, but this is shocking.
Sydney Morning Herald
29-06-2025
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘As bad as I've seen': AFL demands an explanation for ‘unacceptable' SCG surface
'There were no concerns at all,' Lewis said. 'The boys spoke to the grounds manager before the match, and there were no concerns. The Swans have trained on the field this week, and there haven't been any concerns at all. 'We just think it's the heavy dew that has been coming in on the last couple of nights, keeping the top of that surface wetter than we would like.' Dillon was on the phone first thing Saturday morning seeking an explanation for the substandard surface, speaking with the chair of Venues NSW David Gallop, which runs the SCG. The AFL will also send a turf expert to Sydney this week to ensure another surface debacle does not unfold for the Swans' coming clash against Fremantle on Sunday, July 6. Lewis said he was confident the ground would be ready for that match, despite the forecast for up to 172 millimetres of rain in the next seven days. But Dean Cox's men may have to train elsewhere. 'We might have to remove all activities until the next game just so we can get into that northern end, try and get some more seed into it, some heat mats down and some grow lights so we're all ready to go for the next game,' Lewis said. 'We'll do all our best this week. We'll make sure we get the field as best we can for the next game.' One heart-stopping moment happened during the third term when Bulldog star Bailey Williams's legs buckled awkwardly on the shifting ground as he chased after the ball. Another glaring example happened when speedster Nick Blakey slipped over as he tried to take off on a customary run at a crucial stage of the last quarter. The Bulldogs won a tense contest by nine points to mark captain Marcus Bontempelli's 250th game. Brownlow medallist and geelong premiership star Jimmy Bartel slammed the surface as unacceptable. 'I've genuinely got concern,' he told 3AW after the match. 'When I saw Bailey Williams charging out for the footy and went to change direction and [slipped], that had ACL written all over it. 'As we know, it would have to take a star to get hurt to do anything. 'It shouldn't matter who it is but could you only imagine of Isaac Heeney or Chad Warner or [Sam] Darcy or Bont [Marcus Bontempelli] went down with an injury? What would we be saying? 'There's no way you could tick that off [the surface]. Guys have got studded footwear in and if they decided to change direction, they were gone.' Bartel said the clubs and the AFL 'got lucky' that no player suffered a serious injury. Triple premiership Lion Jonathan Brown questioned whether the Friday night match should have been allowed to go ahead. 'This is as bad as I have seen in years,' Brown told Fox Footy. 'I remember playing on the early [Marvel Stadium] surface, and that was a sandpit, but this is shocking.
