Brighton Homes Arena is Australia’s first purpose-designed boutique AFL stadium for women’s football. With a 10,000-person capacity and state-of-the-art gender equal Elite Performance Centre for athletes, it’s easy to understand why it was secured as an Olympic venue as part of the Brisbane 2032 Masterplan.
The Arena has significantly boosted the profile of the city and is driving economic growth through tourism, the relocation of the AFL workforce, and Multicultural Australia who have joined the precinct for refugee and migrant communities creating spaces for people to connect, explore opportunities and engage with one another. Shortly after opening in November 2022, the Arena hosted the televised AFLW Grand Final attracting hundreds of thousands of football spectators at a local and national level. Through hosting major events and addressing local community needs, there is an immense opportunity to bring forward development to leverage the economic uplift created by the Games.
Less than a full year into its operation the Arena has created impact, through enhancing sporting reputation and creating further opportunity for the city. With the recent announcement from the International Olympic Committee approving five additional sporting disciplines of baseball/softball, cricket, flag football, lacrosse and squash, the goalposts have shifted. These sports are relevant, innovative and community-based, played in backyards, schoolyards, community centres, stadiums and parks across the globe.
It unveils new possibilities for the Arena, its activation and its impact. It presents an opportunity to showcase additional sporting disciplines alongside the earmarked Modern Pentathlon. It provides a venue to host the Brisbane Lions AFL men’s team. It offers a state-of-the-art training facility for athletes now and in the future. With an ability to host sporting events broadcasted internationally with fan amenities, complimented with its connectivity by rail and road, this first completed Olympic venue instantly becomes a first-class Games destination.
Visit https://www.brightonhomesarena.com.au/ for more information.