NRL, AFL and Super Rugby unite to fight soaring rents and levies from Stadiums Queensland
GOLD Coast Suns chairman Tony Cochrane has launched an extraordinary broadside at Stadiums Queensland, calling for the board to be sacked for imposing soaring rents and levies at the state’s premiere sporting venues that are crippling all footy codes.
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STADIUMS Queensland has been accused of price gouging the state’s top sports clubs and their fans, with calls for board members to be sacked for imposing soaring rents and levies at major sporting venues.
Southeast Queensland’s NRL, AFL and Super Rugby clubs are so concerned about the fees that they are planning to join together to force a shake-up of the Government body, Stadiums Queensland, The Sunday Mail has learnt.
They claim they are paying rents and transport levies at Queensland stadiums that are between three and five times greater than other states, forcing some clubs to slash staff and penny pinch just to stay afloat.
Suns chairman Tony Cochrane has called for the board to be sacked, describing the organisation as “a disgrace’’.
“They should be sacked and a body put in place that supports sport in this state,’’ he said.
It is understood Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk is contemplating a major shake-up of the board and its structure, with a review underway.
Stadiums Queensland manages the state’s largest venues, including Suncorp Stadium, The Gabba, the 1300SMILES Stadium in Townsville and Metricon Stadium and Cbus Super Stadium on the Gold Coast.
Full Stadiums Queensland response below
It is run by a board of directors, who report to Minister for Sport Mick de Brenni.
Confidential financial records obtained by The Sunday Mail reveal millions of sporting dollars are pouring into Government coffers through the Stadium Queensland deals.
While Queensland’s clubs all face different challenges, they are all stung by the Government levies on policing and transport that runs into the millions across the codes.
The NRL has confirmed its Queensland based clubs had the most expensive rental and operating costs in the competition.
While ANZ Stadium offers sweetheart deals to Sydney clubs, the NRL was forced to save the Titans from bankruptcy in 2012 and last December sold the club to private owners after being crippled by the Government’s annual $1.3 million hiring fee.
“We are working with the stadiums in Queensland to bring venue hire agreements in line with the rest of the Australian market,” an NRL spokesman said.
The Titans have refused to sign a contract with Stadiums Queensland since 2016 because they could not achieve a fair deal and instead rent Cbus Stadium on a game by game basis for about a staggering $110,000 per game.
The situation for the Gold Coast Suns who lose millions every year is even more dire and with the Tasmanian Government circling, the club’s future on the glitter strip cannot be guaranteed.
Their stadium deal struck by then AFL chief operating officer and now CEO Gillon McLachlan, which runs for 20 years and has no review clause written in, is the worst in Australian sport.
They pay close to $1 million annually, which increases with inflation, into a sinking fund and must also spend $700,000 annually on maintenance of Metricon Stadium.
The Cowboys say they would refuse to sign any deal on their new stadium that included such a fee.
It costs about $4 million per year to operate Metricon Stadium and while the AFL is unlikely to pull out while the people behind the expansion such as McLachlan remain in charge, there are legitimate fears that as power changes hands the league will grow tired of pumping cash into an organisation that is handcuffed to an unsustainable commercial arrangement.
Even the jewel-in-the-crown Broncos, who have by far the best arrangement with the Government, get slugged with well over $1 million in levies their interstate competitors escape.
The biggest AFL and NRL clubs in the country don’t pay a public transport levy and the standard contribution to the cost of policing and infrastructure is about $1.20 per ticket.
Free transport is not included. The Suns pay almost $8 a ticket.
Stadiums Queensland says taxpayers should not foot the bill for costs associated with hosting sporting events when the Government had made considerable investment in construction of the facilities. Levy prices were fixed by TransLink and Queensland Police.
“Under this model, the hirer receives the majority of game-day revenue such as ticketing, signage, sponsorship and this means in Queensland, unlike many other states, our clubs have a greater potential to derive revenue from their events,’’ a spokesman said.
The codes reject that view.
The Lions’ inability to post a profit stems from an annual rental at the Gabba of about $1 million a year and an additional $800,000 in transport and police costs.
The Reds and Roar face the biggest levies of the Brisbane-based clubs.
The Roar pay a levy on tickets scanned at the gate which means they only pay for fans who attend the matches.
The QRU is slugged on every ticket issued which means they still incur the levy, believed to be about $4, even when members don’t turn up.
“The QRU believes there should be equity around transport levies applied to Queensland professional sporting teams and that any levy should be applied against tickets scanned at the gate,’’ a spokesman said.
A Stadiums Queensland spokesperson’s response to the following questions:
Does there need to be an overhaul of Stadiums Queensland given rentals and operating costs for our clubs are the most expensive in the country?
· While there are subtle differences between each hiring arrangement, the same commercial model is applied from venue to venue regardless of the code.
· The hirer pays the costs of hosting the events (eg. police costs, staff costs, public transport, cleaning, video screen production, etc.), as these services are essential to ensure patron safety, customer services and successful staging of the event.
· The stadium rental component is only a very small percentage of the overall event cost and the majority of the hirers expense relate to services provided.
· All expenses associated with game day service provision are market-tested (eg. cleaning, security) or set by external agencies (eg. TransLink, Queensland Police Service).
Under this model, the hirer receives the majority of game-day revenue such as ticketing, signage, sponsorship and this means in Queensland, unlike many other states, our clubs have a greater potential to derive revenue from their events.
Given the high potential for revenue for these commercially-run businesses, taxpayers should not be expected to bear the costs of staging these commercial events when the government has provided considerable capital investment to construct these facilities.
Is it a concern that the Gabba, our major cricket and AFL stadium, has fallen behind the rest of the country?
· SQ continues to work with the Queensland Government to review the ways in which it can enhance patron experiences at the Gabba.
· SQ has invested in long-term planning for the venue, including a Vision and Masterplan, to help inform future development opportunities and leverage precinct connectivity associated with the Cross River Rail project.
· SQ has also improved facilities at The Gabba in the shorter term, with two LED video screens and a $1.3 million lighting upgrade as well as upgraded retail and food and beverage facilities completed at the venue in recent years.
SQ is investing across its portfolio, including major capital investment by government across Queensland sports infrastructure including: in excess of $3m for the installation of two new IAF standard tracks at QSAC, the $44m Queensland State Netball Centre (under construction), the $250m North Queensland Stadium (under construction) and the $59 million Anna Meares Velodrome.
There has also been significant investment with Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Why do Qld clubs pay transport levies that do not apply in other states and why do these apply to all tickets when not every fan travels by public transport?
SQ implements the Queensland Government policy of integrated ticketing, which provides patrons with ‘free’ public transport to events at SQ venues in south east Queensland.
Public transport services apply for the provision of special or additional services to meet the additional demand associated with a major event and part of that cost is passed on to the hirer via the transport levy.
This policy has been proven to reduce traffic congestion in and around venues on game-day.
Why is the levy different for every club?
The specifics of commercial hire terms cannot be disclosed, and while there are difference in every hiring agreement, overall the benefits are of similar value, which results in an equitable net balance across the events of our anchor tenants.
The levies reflect the cost and type of transport available in the region.
Why has it been impossible to find a fair stadium deal for the Gold Coast Titans?
SQ has worked closely with the NRL and Gold Coast Titans to ensure an appropriate commercial deal is in place to host its events.
SQ cannot comment on the particulars of any contracts as they are commercial in confidence, however the Titans deal is fair and similar to all clubs operating out of SQvenues.
While there may be differences between the hiring agreements of each of our tenants, overall the benefits are of similar value, which results in an equitable net balance across the events of our anchor tenants.
· The Queensland Government has made it clear to the NRL that the Government is not in a position to subsidise the operations of the Titans.
Why do the Gold Coast Suns pay a sinking fund when other tenants of other stadiums don’t?
· The AFL leases Metricon Stadium, with day to day management responsibility and operation controlled by the Gold Coast Suns.
· Under this agreement, the Gold Coast Suns accept responsibility for all operational and management arrangements at the venue, including maintenance and asset replacement.
Under the lease, the Gold Coast Suns retain all revenues from all events and activities at the stadium.
To ensure the venue is maintained to a world-class standard, maintenance and asset enhancement obligations are met by the Gold Coast Suns.
These are the terms the AFL negotiated prior to signing the lease for the management, operating costs and commercial benefits arising from the venue.
It isn’t fair on Queensland taxpayers to allow a commercially successful operation like the AFL to take all profits, without contributing to the maintenance and asset enhancement of Metricon Stadium.
The Gold Coast Suns are the only professional sporting franchise in Qld managing and operating their home venue.
Will the Cowboys also be charged a sinking fund?
Terms associated with the North Queensland Stadium are still under negotiation however the Cowboys’ current model where the club hires the stadium on a game by game basis, is expected to continue with the new stadium.
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