LIONS CENTRE CLOSE: Despite numerous bad weather hold ups the new centre of excellence for the Brisbane Lions is close to completion. Once the staff move in it will just be a case of getting the field ready for play.
WHEN the Brisbane Lions arrive at their centre of excellence at Springfield in just a few months’ time they will kickstart many extra benefits for the district.
Proposals for the land surrounding the $80m Lions Brighton Homes Arena include top class restaurants
and bars.
It will be a new era for the Brisbane Lions, and it will also be another step forward for Springfield as it moves towards its bid to one day be its own city.
Files and equipment at their present Gabba offices are ready to be packed for the AFL club’s expected move in just a few months.
The Springfield site features an indoor training field, gym, pools, learning facilities, auditorium and more, and is the biggest infrastructure investment from an AFL club ever.
The $80m construction of Brighton Homes Arena will include a 10,000-seat Michael Voss Oval, a 50 metre indoor training field, gymnasium, aquatic recovery pools, hightech learning and teaching facilities, auditorium, and administration offices.
The project was made possible by a $20 million contribution from Ipswich City Council, $18 million from the Queensland Government and $15 million from the Australian Government, as well as matching investments from the Brisbane Lions and the AFL.
The Lions Women’s team will compete for premiership points at the new facility; however, the men’s premiership games will continue to play at the Gabba.
It’s hoped they will be playing at the arena for some of the early pre-season events in 2023.
Other fixtures at the new facility will include, academy matches and community engagement events. Lions chair Andrew Wellington said thanks to our funding partners we’ve reached a significant milestone in delivery of what will be a wonderful community asset.
“For our premiership winning AFLW players to finally have a dedicated home ground and training base they can call their own is fantastic,”
Lions chair Andrew Wellington
SETTING A BENCHMARK
“We think this will be a benchmark not just in Australian Rules Football, but across female professional sport full stop.
“For those that have been involved in AFLW since it started, there’s a real mix of facilities for women as they travel around the country, and they are elite athletes.
“Athletes want to be in an environment where you’re giving them the best chance to be successful, so when we can create this environment out here, it’s a great attribute to retain players and attract new players hopefully.
“To have the one home for all our players, coaches, support, and administration staff will be a huge boost for the Club.
“We’re also proud of the role Brighton Homes Arena will play in promoting and supporting the growth in our sport throughout the Ipswich Region.”
HOME VENUE CHANCE
The new facility could also become the club’s best option for a home venue when the Gabba is knocked down and redeveloped for the 2032 Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games.
At this stage, the new arena will only cater for up to 10,000 fans but the Lions do have approval to build or add additional temporary seating to fit up to 25,000 people.
“We haven’t ruled out that it could host home-and-away games, that’s certainly a possibility,” Mr Wellington said.
Completion of the project is scheduled for late September.
