World Cup bid to build stadium
Soccer could deliver a world-class sports stadium for Perth after Australia's bid for the 2018 or 2022 World Cup included a pledge to build a new 60,000-seat venue in Subiaco.
Details and an artist's impression of the state-of-the-art stadium will be unveiled today as part of the Football Federation Australia's final submission to the sport's world governing body FIFA.
In the 750-page document, the FFA said "all levels of Australian government" have backed the bid, which would include spending $2.8 billion on three new stadiums and upgrading nine existing ones.
"New stadiums will be built in Perth, Canberra and Blacktown in western Sydney underpinning a national infrastructure legacy for Australian sport prior to and following a FIFA World Cup," the FFA said.
"The new stadiums include a 60,000-seat stadium on the Subiaco precinct."
The future of Subiaco Oval and the debate over Perth's next major stadium development have gone round in circles for the past five years after an official task force recommended that Kitchener Park, next to the current WA home of AFL, be used to build a new $700 million facility.
But Premier Colin Barnett dumped the plan soon after being elected in 2008, arguing the State could not afford it. He proposed a revamp of the existing stadium.
He indicated last week that any major development now rested on Australia winning one of the World Cup bids.
"If we do get it, that will trigger a $250 million injection towards the stadium here," Mr Barnett said. "That will change the maths of the exercise and I'll take that into account."
The winning bids for 2018 and 2022 will be announced by FIFA in Zurich on December 2.
A 60,000-seat stadium in Subiaco would mean WA could host quarter-final and semi-final matches as well as group-stage games of the month-long tournament.
Perth would be one of 10 host cities, which also include Geelong and Townsville.
"This nationwide hosting proposal means millions of sports fans across the country will be able to enjoy the biggest and most exciting sporting event in the world in wonderful new or upgraded stadiums in their own cities," FFA chairman Frank Lowy said.
The artist's impression indicates the stadium would include retractable seating to bring fans closer to the rectangle-shaped soccer pitch. The image appears to show the stadium straddling the existing Subiaco Oval site and Kitchener Park.
---------- Post added at 06:58 ---------- Previous post was at 06:54 ----------
Hmmm. A 60,000 seat oval-shaped stadium with retractable seating and coloured external "walls" in Subiaco. Seems familiar somehow....
