Adelaide Venue Management confirms Martin Radcliffe’s role as Chief Executive

The Adelaide Venue Management Corporation has announced Martin Radcliffe as its new Chief Executive, confirming the role he has been acting in since August.

Radcliffe, the Adelaide Convention Centre’s General Manager since May 2022, was placed in the role on an interim basis after longstanding Adelaide Venue Management Corporation (AVM) Chief Executive Anthony Kirchner was first stood down and, as of late September, sacked over his introduction of a ban on Melbourne Victory fans attending the next A-League fixture against Adelaide United at Coopers Stadium.

Announcing Radcliffe’s appointment, AVM Chair Andrew Daniels “while we were extremely impressed with the quality of the applications we received (for the vacancy), Martin’s vision for the future of the business stood above all others.

“In Martin, we have an energetic and accomplished leader who understands the relationships we have nurtured, sees the opportunities in front of us and has a clear plan of how to capitalise on these and continue our growth trajectory.”

Welcoming being confirmed in the role, Radcliffe, who currently serves as the Chair of Adelaide Hills Tourism, stated “we have had some outstanding recent international events such as FIFA Women’s World Cup games, the World Indigenous Peoples Conference on Education, and concerts from Paul McCartney and the Foo Fighters.

“I believe there is significant further growth potential in positioning ourselves as a key global player to both ensure the continued strength and growth of AVM as well as the success of Adelaide and South Australia as a destination for major events.

“I’m also committed to building on our leadership in sustainability. We will continue to invest in environmental and social initiatives to ensure our growth is responsible and considered.”

While at the Adelaide Convention Centre, the venue had a record trading year in 2022/23 and become the first in the world to be awarded EarthCheck Master Status sustainability certification.

AVM also achieved a record financial trading profit of $13.1 million in 2022/23, attracting over 300,000 visitors to the state.

Sacking of Anthony Kirchner
AVM sacked Kirchner following a review of the August decision to ban Melbourne Victory fans from Coopers Stadium.  

The ban was short-lived with AVM Chair Andrew Daniels quickly stepping in to claim the statement had been made “in error’’.

Daniels was reported as saying “when it was realised that it (the ban on Melbourne Victory fans) had gone up it was as quickly as possible ... withdrawn.

“Things have happened that shouldn’t have happened and certainly, on behalf of the organisation, (I) put my hand up for that and apologise for it.”

However, this was subsequently refuted by Kirchner who wrote in an email “there was no error or backflip from AVM management, I authorised the statement to be issued in my capacity as AVM CEO.

“The AVM Board was aware of my intended position on this matter and Chair Andrew Daniels had requested that AVM management show leadership on this issue. This was minuted accordingly.

“As AVM CEO, the safety of all concerned is my first priority, but I also have very specific responsibilities under the WHS Act whereby I can be personally fined hundreds of thousands of dollars or jailed for up to ten years if I’m found to be negligent.

“These penalties shall now fall at the feet of those who made the decision to overturn my decision should a serious safety incident occur. It’s only a matter of time.”

Image: New AVM Chief Executive Martin Radcliffe. Credit: AVM.

Was it right for AVM to sack Anthony Kirchner? We welcome your comments below or by email to leisure@ausleisure.com.au