State welcomes inter-city Olympic tension as Brisbane misses out on Matildas
Queensland’s sports minister has encouraged competitive tension between Brisbane and the Gold Coast over which city should host 2032 Olympic and Paralympic swimming.
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate first floated the idea of poaching swimming from Brisbane last month in his submission to the 100-day venue review.
Such a move would put the planned Brisbane Arena in doubt, as the rationale for its construction within the Olympic funding envelope was that it would host swimming in a temporary drop-in pool.
The revised plan for the Brisbane Arena saw the indoor stadium moved to the northern end of Roma Street Parklands.Credit: Queensland government
“No swimming in Brisbane means no new entertainment venue and the opportunity to build a federally funded arena in the inner city may be lost forever,” Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said.
“Building this venue isn’t about the Olympics. It’s about building a legacy that can benefit residents for decades to come.
“Does anyone really believe leaving Brisbane with Boondall as its main entertainment option is a good idea?”
Speaking on the Gold Coast on Thursday to announce the match schedule for next year’s AFC Women’s Asian Cup, Sports Minister Tim Mander said he remained neutral on swimming venue.
“We welcome that type of tension, and we welcome the fact that people want events,” he said.
“Of course, the Games Independent Infrastructure Co-ordination Authority will be submitting its final report the next couple of weeks and once we’ve got that, we can put all this speculation to bed and get on with building the venues that are so necessary.”
Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie received a draft on the weekend, but Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King said the Commonwealth had not yet been provided with a copy, despite being a 50-50 funding partner.
Speaking in Brisbane on Thursday morning, King said she is hoping for an “early line of sight” of the review and would not “engage in hypotheticals” about possible changes to the plan.
“The Brisbane arena is really important. It’s why we made the commitment to that the Commonwealth would fund that $2.5 billion to it,” she said.
“We think it leaves a really strong and lasting legacy for entertainment here in the city of Brisbane.”
The Brisbane-Gold Coast rivalry also reared its head during the Women’s Asian Cup announcement.
The 27,000-seat Robina Stadium will host six matches next year, including a Matildas group stage match, with other matches to be held in Sydney and Perth.
“We want to share the love around as well with regards to where our major events are played,” Mander said when asked about Brisbane missing out.
But in an online discussion last week, Football Australia chief executive James Johnson said Brisbane was overlooked because it lacked a suitable stadium.
“If we’re looking to bring more competitions of international level back to Australia, like the women’s Asian Cup that we’re hosting in 2026, sometimes stadiums of tier-two standard are what you need to organise a competition,” he said.
Football Australia, along with the state body, has urged GIICA to consider a Perry Park upgrade ahead of the Games.