Footy fever spreads as states vie for final

On the AFL’s biggest day, Perth’s River View Rooms or Brisbane’s Legends Room may be the place to be in October.

On hosting the big match, Brisbane Lions chief executive Greg Swann says, ‘We’ve kept the competition afloat so I don’t see why we’re not in the mix’. Picture: AAP

It is not the salubrious Olympic Room at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, where billionaires, business leaders, prime ministers and premiers usually mix on the AFL’s biggest day, but Perth’s River View Rooms or Brisbane’s Legends Room may be the place to be in October.

And don’t rule out the Platinum Lounge at Sydney’s ANZ Stadium should the health, economic and promotional advantages stack up in favour of the NSW capital.

It will take a cheque of more than $5m and the ability to make a profit of at least $20m to move the AFL grand final from Melbourne, an idea considered sacrosanct before COVID-19 but that is now gathering pace.

Which means a big change not only for the players who take the field to decide AFL premiership winners, likely on October 17, but also for — health authorities willing — the nation’s movers and shakers if they can get there.

While the AFL is publicly committed for now to maintaining its contract to stage the ­biggest event of its year at the 100,000-capacity MCG, the league is beginning to look at ­options elsewhere with Victoria locked down harder than the rest of the country until mid-August at least as it suffers concerning levels of coronavirus cases.

Leading the pack of alternatives is Perth’s Optus Stadium, which hosted a “neutral” 22,000 crowd between Collingwood and Geelong on Thursday night and slightly more for the derby ­between West Coast and Fremantle on Sunday.

The AFL has a contract to host the grand final until at least 2057 as part of a $500m deal ­including $300m in funding for a ­revamp of the league-owned Marvel Stadium across town at Docklands, and it makes the AFL big money.

The sheer range and size of corporate hospitality facilities where business pays top dollar for tickets and fans in the stands shelling out for the most expensive tickets of the year, means the AFL and its 18 clubs make a profit of at least $20m each year from the season-decider.

At that amount, the grand final is second only to broadcast rights as the AFL’s biggest single earner every year.

Sources told The Australian that the AFL, despite moving all its players out of Victoria in the past two weeks, is still on very good terms with the state government and is loath to rule out Melbourne as the grand final host until it is absolutely unfeasible.

Decision day looms in August.

While West Australia Premier Mark McGowan has said he “hates” the idea of bidding with other states for the grand final, Perth’s Optus Stadium is understood to be the venue with the most corporate suites and hospitality areas so it can at least come close to the $20m profit the AFL makes in Melbourne should it be full at its 60,000 capacity.

Optus Stadium has at least six large corporate rooms plus dozens of suites that would surely sell quickly in what is an already football-mad town. Stadium management has also said it could cope with hosting an entire finals series if necessary, which would provide a much-needed boost to the AFL’s coffers in a year in which it is spending up to $40m to have its players and their families living in “hubs” in Queensland and WA.

The WA government has previously written $5m cheques to take a rugby league State of ­Origin to Perth and star-studded ­soccer teams such as Manchester United. It would take at least a similar amount to clinch the AFL grand final.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has said her state would be keen to host the match at the Gabba in Brisbane, and the Brownlow Medal function at the start of the week.

Brisbane Lions chief executive Greg Swann said the state had successfully hosted a bigger amount of teams and matches as the season progressed as clubs fled Victoria, and it therefore ­deserved the chance.

“We’ve kept the competition afloat so I don’t see why we’re not in the mix,” he said.

Meanwhile, NSW authorities could also be keen. GWS Giants chair Tony Shepherd said a Sydney grand final would be “ideal to showcase the sport north of the Murray”, adding that ANZ ­Stadium at Olympic Park could be reconfigured in time.