Stadiums Queensland reaches 20th anniversary of operations

Stadiums Queensland has marked its 20th anniversary of operations, highlighting how over two decades the agency has hosted tens of millions of fans at thousands of events, such as the Commonwealth Games and numerous World Cup events.

In a social media communication, the Queensland Government agency recalled that over its life it has “hosted the sporting stars of our generation at major events such as the Brisbane International, The Ashes and State of Origin.

“We’ve helped our future Olympians, Paralympians, high performance athletes and community athletes achieve their dreams.

“We’ve hosted countless concerts from the world’s biggest performers.

“We’ve built new venues like the Queensland State Tennis Centre, Cbus Super Stadium, Queensland Country Bank Stadium and facilities like the Anna Meares Velodrome at Sleeman Sports Complex, as well as rebuilt other venues like Suncorp Stadium and Metricon Stadium.”

Created as the Major Sports Facilities Authority, and subsequently rebranded as Stadiums Queensland, the body was officially formed following the passing of the Major Sports Facilities Act 2001, in the Queensland of Parliament was passed on 1st December 2001.

Charged with the management of the state’s major sports facilities that are declared under Queensland Government regulation as being venues having the capacity to stage national or international sports events, recreational or entertainment experiences, today, Stadiums Queensland owns and operates more than $1.2 billion worth of sporting and entertainment infrastructure.

Like all venue operators, Stadiums Queensland has faced a range of unprecedented challenges through the Coronavirus pandemic with its most recent annual report, issued in September outlining how it responded.

Overall, Stadiums Queensland hosted nearly 3.2 million patrons across its venues in 2020/21 (compared to 2,653,096 patrons in 2019/20) while aiding several Australian sporting competitions impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the 2020 AFL Premiership season, which alone contributed more than $136 million to the Queensland economy.

In addition, the Queensland Sport And Athletics Centre (QSAC) supported numerous high PERFORMANCE elite programs, including Tokyo bound Olympic Athletes, with continued access to training facilities during various COVID-19 lockdowns and also began development of a new best-practice high performance gym while the Sleeman Sports Complex (SSC) hosted major state and national sporting championships in track cycling, bmx, swimming, gymnastics, diving, skipping, underwater rugby, dancesport and hip hop.

Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium hosted the largest crowd for a sporting event anywhere in the world since COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic, with more than 49,000 fans at the 2020 NRL State of Origin.

With 2021 extending beyond the period covered by the annual report, a recent update has advised that across its nine venues, Stadiums Queensland has this year “held 401 events, serving a total of 2,943,225 visitors, under COVID Safe conditions.

“We watched athletes set records and log 3,488,689 training hours.

“We celebrated the announcement of 2032 Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games and associated redevelopment of The Gabba.

“We hosted all three State of Origin Games, the first Ashes Series Test match, the NRL Grand Final and much more.”

Adding that “there’s so much more to come”, Stadium Queensland can also look forward to playing a key role in the 2032 Brisbane Olympics and Parlaympics.

Click here to view the Stadiums Queensland 2020/21 Annual Report.

Images: Stadiums Queensland marks 20 years (top, credit: Stadiums Queensland), venue patronage figures from the Stadiums Queensland annual report (middle) and Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium hosting the largest crowd for a sporting event in Australia in 2019 (below, credit: Blair Hughes).