Feature

AFL games at Eureka Stadium to double after upgrades

The AFL Aussie rules football league has said the number of games staged at the Eureka Stadium in Ballarat will double in 2018, following development work at the venue.

Upgrades at the facility include the construction of a new undercover grandstand, which will increase its capacity to 11,000 and is due to be completed before the venue hosts its first AFL game. A 50 sq-metre video scoreboard is also to be installed.

The Eureka Stadium has already undergone work in preparation for AFL duties, such as the complete reconstruction and replacement of turf.

Ballarat Mayor Samantha McIntosh told the AFL.com.au website that the venue has already agreed to host two matches in 2018, estimating that the move could help generate up to A$3.6m (€2.5m/$US2.7m/£2.1m) in additional tourism spending.

“The stadium will host two premiership games in 2018. We are also looking at hosting pre-season games as well as the potential for AFLW games in the 2018 season,” McIntosh said.

“The cost of the video scoreboard has been met by the state government as part of its funding commitment to upgrade the ground to AFL standard, and the video scoreboard will be installed early next year.”

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