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Sydney FC are set to seek millions of dollars in compensation from Venues NSW to account for the findings of an impending review into Allianz Stadium’s faltering drainage system, which the A-League club fears could block them from playing games at their home ground until 2026.
The review, due to be completed in the coming weeks, is expected to recommend the $828 million stadium – which only opened in September 2022 – be shut down for at least six weeks for remediation work required to address the ongoing issues with the playing surface to be carried out.
Douglas Costa with fans at a Sydney FC game at Allianz Stadium in April.Credit: Getty Images
No tenant at Allianz Stadium will be hit harder than the Sky Blues, who play more games at Moore Park per season than the Sydney Roosters or NSW Waratahs but, as chief executive Mark Aubrey has noted, always seem to cop the rough end of the stick as the government agency tries to strike a balance between the requirements of sporting teams with the need to generate big financial returns from major events.
Sydney FC are already frustrated by the lifting of restrictions on how many concerts can be held at Allianz Stadium per year. Most of those will take place in the summer months, during the A-League season, and each concert stage inevitably leads to turf damage – impacting soccer, due to the nature of the game, far more than the other football codes which can cope with a less-than-perfect surface.
But the prospect of a lengthy lock-out – so soon after spending four years as nomads, playing home games at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium in Kogarah and Leichhardt Oval as they awaited construction of the new Allianz – has further raised Sydney FC’s ire.
The club’s business model is effectively built around the amenities at Allianz Stadium, through corporate hospitality, sponsorship signage and premium memberships – particularly the Tunnel Club, a pricey VIP section in which fans can view players warming up and walking out onto the field pre-match, an experience that cannot be replicated elsewhere. The club holds further fears about how the disruption could affect walk-up ticket sales and general momentum across the season, on and off the field.
Sydney FC chief executive Mark Aubrey.Credit: Getty Images
Sources close to the situation, who were not permitted to speak publicly, say a specific compensation figure has not been discussed yet between the club and Venues NSW. However, the Sky Blues received $5 million per season from the government when they were displaced after the old Allianz Stadium was knocked down – equating to roughly $350,000 per match across 14 home games.
That figure, according to sources, is likely to guide what Sydney FC will ask for this time around – as a minimum. So, for example, if they were forced to take six home games to Kogarah or Allianz, they could seek as much as $3 million from the government.
Even in the best-case scenario of a six-week lockout, the timing of the resurfacing could sting the Sky Blues. The club does not expect the work to begin until after the Wallabies host Argentina on September 13, nor for a new surface to be relaid until after concerts by Kendrick Lamar and Dom Dolla in December. There is also an international break in November which means that, if there happens to be a small window between in which they can return to Allianz, their opportunities to do so might be limited.
It means that, with the A-League Men’s fixture list to be released by the end of July, a good portion of Sydney FC’s home games will be scheduled with the venue TBC.
“We are working with Venues NSW and are doing our best to manage these issues however our proposals have so far been rejected,” Aubrey said.
“As a worst-case scenario, we may not get access to our home pitch until January, and that would be extremely damaging to our season from a commercial and competitions perspective.
“Particularly in conjunction with the increase in concerts at the venue, this is hugely disappointing for our members and commercial partners.
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“It’s frustrating that football and Sydney FC, as the stadium’s only summer tenant who plays the most games at the venue, will once again have to wear the brunt of these issues.”
Allianz Stadium’s drainage problems made international news over the weekend after British and Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell - presumably unaware of the venue’s history - accused the NSW Waratahs of watering the field before Saturday night’s game for tactical reasons.
Last season, A-League players rated Allianz Stadium as the second-worst surface in the competition – behind only Suncorp Stadium – through regular polling conducted by players’ union Professional Footballers Australia.
Sydney FC will play there next Tuesday night in their glamour friendly against Wrexham AFC, but the date of their next game after that is very much up in the air.
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