Now with Beer Garden for our smoking patrons.
Don't get me wrong, having a World Cup in Australia will be awesome, but I'll only believe it when I see it. Our Governments/Sports Ministers/FFA big shots etc. need to wake up and act NOW if they want to give themselves the slightest chance of this being a reality.
ADRIAN WARREN
October 30, 2007 02:45pm
FOOTBALL Federation Australia (FFA) chief executive Ben Buckley says Australia is "very serious" about bidding to host the 2018 World Cup.
The statement came after FIFA scrapped its rotation policy overnight.
The FIFA executive committee voted to end the rotation policy under which only the North American region would have been eligible to stage the 2018 World Cup.
"We are very serious," said Buckley today.
"We flagged our intention to bid for the World Cup at the earliest possible opportunity and we are delighted that the FIFA executive committee has decided to abandon the rotation policy.
"That will give us the opportunity to bid for and hopefully be successful in securing the right to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
"I've no doubt that if the policy stayed in place the opportunity to host would have been at a later period.
"So whilst we will be competing with European-based nations and nations from all over the world, we think this will be a better system and a better opportunity for us."
Buckley said the FFA had already done preliminary work looking at potential stadiums and the financial feasibility of hosting the World Cup.
Buckley acknowledged Australia would face opposition from Europe and even from within the Asian region, with China among other mooted contenders.
He dismissed the suggestion that London was a "shoo-in" for 2018.
"I don't think anyone is a shoo-in," he said.
"The race has only just started so I'm not sure anyone can be a shoo-in and I think Australia's credentials stack up against anyone's in the world."
Buckley also dismissed the suggestion Australia would have to bid more than once before earning hosting rights and he wasn't overly concerned that the southern hemisphere would also stage the 2010 (South Africa) and 2014 World Cups, with Brazil set to announced as 2014 host tomorrow.
Asia last staged the World Cup in 2002, when Japan and South Korea co-hosted.
Buckley said the FFA had had preliminary discussions with the federal government and had also briefed the opposition about its plans and he expected "strong support" from government.
Stadia- These are basically the best/biggest sporting facilities we have in each state:
NSW- Telstra Stadium, Aussie Stadium, SCG, Sydney Showground
QLD- Suncorp Stadium, Gabba
VIC- MCG, Telstra Dome, Olympic Park
WA- Subiaco Oval, WACA
SA- AAMI Stadium, Adelaide Oval, Hindmarsh Stadium
TAS- Aurora Stadium
And only then could we expect the MCG (100,000), Telstra Stadium (84,000), Telstra Dome (56,000), Suncorp Stadium (53,000), Aussie Stadium (46,000) and possibly AAMI (51,000) to be used. MCG and AAMI would be questionable though as they are are NOT designed for Football. (I have been to the MCG for football games before, the view from behind the goals is VERY average). The others would all be out of the question. FIFA will no way allow them as they are either Cricket/AFL grounds, or too small, or both. FIFA has strict guidlines in terms of criteria for stadiums, eg. they are against stadiums with running tracks around them/stadiums with playing fields big enough to have a running track around it (MCG, AAMI). Each WC stadium must have a MINIMUM capacity of 40,000. Another FIFA criteria is that each host city can have NO MORE than TWO venues, so Australia would need to invest serious dollars in building suitable FOOTBALL stadiums nationwide.
So with the 2 stadium per host city rule, we are looking at something like this:
Sydney: Telstra Stadium + Aussie Stadium
Melbourne: MCG + Telstra Dome
Brisbane: Suncorp + 1
Adelaide: 2 stadiums
Perth: 2 stadiums
Other: 1-2 stadiums
I think a Australia-New Zealand joint bid would be more feasible option. One of the problems at the moment is there really aren't enough venues. Once you go past the big 5 cities, what kind of footballing culture is there in bloody Wagga Wagga (for example)?? 85% of Australias population lives within these 5 cities. Best bet would be something like Australia having 7-8 venues, with Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington making up the numbers.
Infrastructure - Yes, the big 3 capital cities all have fantastic public transport systems. Have proven that they can handle individual big events alone (Melb - CW games, Syd - Olympic games, Bris - CW games) very successfully. Roads, public transport, hotels, etc etc are for the most part top notch and could handle it quite easily (not to mention the upgrades that will also take place before 2018 if the bid is successful).
My Verdict: It's a longshot at present until we start to hear what they have in mind for facilities etc., but it's definitely possible if they get the ball rolling NOW. And back to Adelaide, this is just what we need to get that REAL world class stadium proposal off the ground
