MCG likely to allow AFL to break grand final contract

The AFL could offer the MCC an enhanced fixture in coming seasons or extend the grand final contract through to 2058 as part of negotiations to move the 2020 grand final interstate.

The Gabba in Brisbane is a front-runner to host the AFL grand final

The AFL’s negotiations to shift the grand final interstate could include moves to extend the MCG’s grand final contract for another season or hand the ground an improved fixture in coming seasons.

The AFL, MCC and Victorian government will soon enter negotiations, with the inevitable decision to move the game moving closer.

The state government and MCC paid a significant sum in 2018 to extend the contract for the MCG to host the grand final until 2057.

So while the MCC would be expected to eventually relent to allow the game to be moved, all parties will need to broker a sensible agreement.

The league’s imminent decision to shift the grand final to a ground likely to be the Gabba will only solidify its future at the MCG in coming decades.

The league could offer the MCC an extension on the deal through to 2058 or could hand it several more blockbuster games in coming seasons as part of the negotiation.

The Sunday Herald Sun reported Victorian sports minister Martin Pakula will in coming weeks begin negotiations that would allow the game to be shifted interstate.

Queensland is desperate to secure the grand final and while West Australia has expressed interest no official submission has been lodged for a game at Optus Stadium.

The only game-changer to drag the game away from Queensland would be increased COVID numbers which might keep crowd numbers at the Gabba low and restrict lucrative ticket revenue.

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If Perth’s Optus Stadium could offer a full house of nearly 60,000 and only a few thousand were allowed into a Gabba contest it would be a tough decision for the AFL.

The AFL makes around $12m in ticket sales from the grand final and also puts on the lucrative September Club functions for corporate patrons.

The league would want to recoup much of that money in a bidding war between state governments.

The league could also offer Queensland a package that includes the Brownlow Medal, and potentially even December’s national draft.

But amid strong lobbying by interstate football fans to share the grand final between states, the lost money will have to be recouped by the MCC, which has obligations to MCC and AFL Members.

The lost 2020 grand final will only make it more intent on keeping a water-tight contact to host the grand final through to 2057.

That contract was extended in 2018 as part of a state government deal that poured $225 million dollars into Victorian venues including Marvel Stadium.

Herald Sun