Colin Barnett, the Premier of Western Australia, has hit out at the government’s plan to sell naming rights to the new Perth Stadium.
Earlier in the week, the Labor Party announced its intention to market the naming rights to the under-construction facility to ease its finances.
However, the plans have drawn criticism from Barnett, who does not want the stadium to bear the name of “some corporate entity”.
“This is our stadium,” Barnett said, according to The West Australian newspaper. “It belongs to every single West Australian. West Australians have paid for this stadium and the West Australian public will enjoy it for decades and decades to come. This stadium is an iconic part of Perth.
“We’re not going to have a stadium taken over by some corporate entity with their naming rights over which you’ve got very little practical control. I don’t want to see this stadium lit up with some corporate logo or colour scheme.
“When people watch sporting events here, AFL around the country, when they watch Chelsea play a game here worldwide … I want Perth to be in lights, I want this to be seen as Perth. Great city, great stadium.”
Mark McGowan, leader of the Labor Party in Western Australia, defended the move and insisted ‘Perth’ would remain in the stadium’s name. He added that he would like to see a local company take on naming rights to the facility.
The 65,000-capacity venue is slated to open next year. The stadium is set to serve as the home of the Fremantle Dockers and West Coat Eagles AFL Aussie rules football teams and will also host cricket, rugby union, rugby league and entertainment events.
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