AFL purchases Waverley Park from Hawthorn FC

The AFL has announced that Waverley Park in Melbourne's east has returned to its possession, after the League completed a deal to buy the venue from Hawthorn ahead of the Hawks' planned move to their new Dingley training base.

Yet to confirm its plans for the heritage-listed building and the training oval, AFL Chief Executive CEO Andrew Dillon said the purchase of the ground would assist with "talent pathways programs, community footy, and umpire development and programs".

Waverley Park was the first sporting field built specifically for Australian rules football, and hosted a total of 732 VFL/AFL games from 1970 to 1999, including 70 finals and the 1991 AFL Grand Final between Hawthorn and West Coast.

Dillon noted “Waverley Park has had a long history in footy, being the first venue to be designed and built specifically for Australian rules football.

“The purchase of the ground and facilities is a rare and timely solution that will help with our talent pathways programs, community footy, and umpire development and programs, all of which will now be worked through with the relevant stakeholders.

“The AFL has targeted having 10 million attendees at AFL/AFLW games, events, and festivals, two million AFL club members and one million participants and in order to achieve the target for participation we need two ovals a week every week for the next five years.

“We are always looking for greenspace so we can continue to expand the playing fields we need to accommodate the strong national growth in people playing our game."

The Hawks have been planning an expanded home venue for more than a decade, and will move into the $100 million Kennedy Community Centre in Dingley later this year.

Welcoming the deal, Hawthorn Chief Operating Officer, Jacob Attwood commented "with the facility changing hands to the AFL, we are confident that its historical significance of Waverley Park will be preserved.

"Looking forward for our club, the sale of this facility puts us in a very strong position to make the move to the Kennedy Community Centre later this year."

Images: The main grandstand at Waverley Park (top) and the venue is also home to a Goodlife gym (below). Credit: Hawthorn FC.