Perry Park upgrade expected to be agreed to in ‘near future’
Football Queensland’s push for an upgrade of Perry Park may soon bear fruit, with the state’s sports minister hinting on Thursday an agreement was not far off.
Football Australia and FQ lobbied to the Games Independent Infrastructure and Co-ordination Authority for a 17,500-seat stadium, but Perry Park was overlooked as an Olympic venue in its 100-day review.
But Premier David Crisafulli accepted GIICA’s recommendation that Perry Park receive an upgrade and FQ has been in high-level negotiations with the government about the scale of that upgrade since.
Perry Park’s 1960s-era grandstand packed to the rafters for a recent Brisbane Roar A-League Women match.Credit: Brisbane Roar
Asked whether that upgrade would bring the ageing Perry Park to A-League standards, Sports Minister Tim Mander would only say negotiations were well advanced.
“We have committed to making sure that we have a great facility for football and those discussions are continuing,” he said on Thursday.
“There will be some announcements about that in the near future.”
Football Queensland chief executive Robert Cavallucci said they had been working closely with the Crisafulli government for the past few months.
“I want to thank the premier, deputy premier and the minister for sport for their collaborative approach and productive partnership, which is ongoing,” he said.
“They are listening and together we are optimistic about progressing an outcome that will leave a lasting impact for sport and the visitor economy in the city.”
Despite’s GIICA’s finding, Brisbane 2032 president Andrew Liveris left the door open for its possible inclusion as an Olympic venue after the state government unveiled its Olympic plans at Howard Smith Wharves.
“From an Olympics point of view, we don’t have Perry Park as a venue for anything yet,” he told this masthead in March, before adding for emphasis: “Yet.”
Football Queensland’s proposal for a 17,500-seat stadium at Perry Park.Credit: Populous
Announcing Michael Valkanis as new men’s head coach on Wednesday, Brisbane Roar chief executive Kaz Patafta said the Bakrie Group, the Roar’s multibillion-dollar Indonesian owner, would open its wallet to invest in the infrastructure.
“We’re pushing for that. I believe it’s the right move for us as a club,” he said.
“We’d also be willing, as a club, to invest privately into that.
“... I think the atmosphere we can build at Perry Park would be phenomenal. I think it would be scary for other teams to come and play us there, so we’re working towards that.”
Patafta said the Roar had a deep connection to Suncorp Stadium, where the club had struggled to attract fans in recent seasons. As such, a hybrid arrangement, where bigger games would continue to be played at Suncorp Stadium, would be “ideal” for the club.
Brisbane Roar chief executive Kaz Patafta and new men’s coach Michael Valkanis at Suncorp Stadium on Wednesday.Credit: Chris Hyde/Getty Images
“What we can’t do is take Brisbane Roar outside of Brisbane, that’s just not our agenda,” he said, in an apparent reference to the club’s three-year stint at Kayo Stadium at Redcliffe.
The access-limited Ballymore, the home of Queensland rugby, was not mentioned as an option.
Outgoing Football Australia chief executive James Johnson has blamed Brisbane’s lack of an appropriately sized venue as a key reason the city was overlooked for this year’s AFC Women’s Asian Cup, featuring the Matildas, in favour of Cbus Super Stadium on the Gold Coast.