Colin Carter: All the reasons why a new AFL stadium should be supported, built in Tasmania

‘It will be a tragedy if our AFL licence now dies in its tracks, so this letter is a plea to all involved – let’s think carefully about where this stadium debate is going”. COLIN CARTER’S LETTER >

Designs of what Hobart's new AFL stadium at Macquarie Point could look like. Images supplied by AFL

It’s taken a long time to do the right thing by Tasmania, and it will be a tragedy if the AFL licence now dies in its tracks. And so this letter is a plea to all involved – let’s think carefully about where this stadium debate is going.

We won’t get a team without a decent stadium. We can discuss what sort of stadium is needed, but that Tasmania needs a new one is beyond dispute. Let me explain why.

All AFL matches are now played in modern, 21st century stadiums. There are many old football grounds once used in the VFL, SANFL and WAFL competitions, but only one has survived for use in AFL matches – Geelong’s ground at Kardinia Park.

The football world has changed in the decades since the campaign for a Tasmanian licence started.

Some advocates for a Tasmanian team point to Geelong, a regional team, as providing a model for Tasmanian success. But we must understand that Geelong, to keep its place in the national competition, has totally rebuilt its stadium.

The most recent and final stage cost $142m and covers about 20 per cent of the oval perimeter. In today’s dollars, the price tag of rebuilding Kardinia Park has been well over $700m. The club sees the rebuild as crucial to sustaining its revenue base. Without it, the club simply would not have survived as a Geelong-based team.

Tasmania’s team will compete against powerful AFL clubs, all securing great value from the commercial opportunities that their modern stadiums provide. And so the AFL is correctly demanding that Tasmania enters the competition in the same way. It wants a modern stadium attractive to fans, meeting today’s consumer expectations, attracting footy fans from all over Australia and, importantly, providing plenty of commercial opportunities for the resident club.

Former Tasmanian premier Peter Gutwein and former Geelong President Colin Carter at UTAS Stadium, Launceston, in 2021. Mr Carter is adamant that a new stadium at Macquarie Point is required for a Tasmanian team to be a success. Picture: Chris Kidd

The AFL doesn’t want us playing in the competition’s worst facilities. That would undermine the club’s prospects for success.

And how fortunate we are with the proposed CBD location. A city location will attract fans and bring the city to life. Waverley Park in Melbourne and Football Park in Adelaide were miserable compared to today’s stadiums in the CBD.

Yes, the community has serious social needs in housing, education and health. But these needs will always be there. No sports stadium, art gallery, theatre or museum will ever be built if only compared against those pressing social needs.

Geelong also has social disadvantage, and in the early stage of the stadium’s redevelopment there were debates on government spending priorities. How is a grandstand justified when a new hospital wing is needed?

Today, the club gets less of that when new stadium development stages are announced. The community enjoys having a great football club. It brings community pride and several hundred highly paid jobs. Local businesses get spin-offs. The club’s community programs help vulnerable young people. The club collaborates with the local university on sports-related research.

A concept design of what Hobart's new AFL stadium at Macquarie Point could look like. Images supplied by AFL

In short, the equation is not just a stadium versus community needs. An AFL team brings great community value – and playing in a stadium that meets competition standards is a necessary price to pay for that.

And as they say, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. Federal governments of either persuasion put precious little – and mostly nothing – into the stadiums built around Australia. The funding load is mostly borne by state governments. The $240m offered by the federal government for a Hobart stadium is almost without precedent.

Thus, for about $375m, we get a stadium costing more than $700m, plus about $30m per year in AFL investment in the club and football in the state. And an entertainment centre, a sporting precinct and a broader urban renewal opportunity. It’s a good deal.

Finally, don’t underestimate the view in AFL circles. Our biggest challenge was to convince football’s leaders that a Tasmanian team would not be a drain on competition finances. We achieved this – the financial support needed from the AFL would be reasonable. Long-time sceptics changed their minds.

Official announcement for the 19th AFL licence for a Tasmanian team, Colin Carter, centre, at North Hobart Oval. Picture: Chris Kidd

But let’s be clear – the AFL doesn’t want a Tasmanian team with “lead in its saddle bags’’. A quality stadium with its commercial opportunities is a big part of the platform for the team’s success and was the premise upon which the AFL clubs signed off on the 19th licence.

Let’s not argue that a better stadium isn’t necessary. The competition won’t accept that. Blundstone Arena is seen as inadequate (that’s the polite version) and in the wrong location. Rather, we should engage in a discussion with the AFL about what a new stadium should look like. What design will make it iconic? Might some social needs be creatively met – could some education facilities or even affordable or student housing be built into the stadium infrastructure? What is the best roof design for sport, and for attracting concerts and other events to the state? Are there win-win solutions?

In my 2021 report, I wrote that “a stadium strategy will be needed …. and it is reasonable to assume that the Tasmanian government will address stadium requirements as governments have done so well in every other state. Significant investment will be required.”

The battle for a licence has gone on for a long time. Let’s not stuff it up!

Colin Carter provided advice to the AFL affirming Tasmania’s case. He is a former AFL commissioner and Geelong president.