AFL 2021: Optus Stadium ready to make serious play for this year’s grand Final

Optus Stadium will look to pull off an AFL grand final heist if Victoria’s repeated inability to control coronavirus threatens the return of 100,000 fans to the MCG on September 25.

Saturday night’s Dreamtime sellout at Western Australia’s dazzling 60,000-seat stadium showed what the $1.6 billion precinct on the banks of the Swan River can pull off at short notice.

Losing football’s biggest day for a second-straight season would be another kick in the guts for Victorians, who have endured more pandemic pain than every other state combined.

Optus Stadium boss Mike McKenna told the Herald Sun the Essendon-Richmond extravaganza served as a reminder that the AFL should only consider moving its grand final to a traditional football state.

“People in Western Australia, South Australia or even Tasmania have put in a lot over the years to make the game what it is today and deserve to be part of the celebration of those events,” McKenna said.

“We were ready last year, and we’ll be ready this year.

“We had a very serious crack at it and we think the bid we put in got their serious attention.”

Tickets to Dreamtime were snapped up in just 17 hours, with West Australians regarding their ground as the jewel in Australia’s sporting crown.

It was bathed in glorious winter sunshine when the Bombers and Tigers arrived for their marquee match.

The AFL Commission has locked in a traditional 2.30pm AEST grand final start time, which would see the ball bounced at 12.30pm in Perth.

The AFL was forced to rip last year’s grand final out of Victoria because of the state’s deadly second wave of COVID-19.

The troubled state extended its fourth lockdown last week and Victorian clubs fear that capacity crowds won’t return this season.

Five more local cases of the virus were reported on Saturday, taking Victoria’s number of active cases to 78.

Even if the state makes a full recovery, another minor outbreak in September would threaten the finals series because restrictions would once again be imposed.

“Our stadium is built for these sorts of occasions (grand finals),” McKenna said.

“We’ve got great equipment and technology that we can utilise to really make the event experience something special.

“There’s nothing like being here for a big game where the crowd is full and making lots of noise and we can then add to that atmosphere with the lights and the sound system.

“That’s what makes this stadium really special.”

Perth Stadium “had a bit of a sniff” at stealing the NRL’s State of Origin opener from the MCG, which will now be played in Townsville on Wednesday.

“In recent times we’ve been more used to putting events off than putting them on, so it’s a nice change of speed,” McKenna said.

“Whether it be a football event, a soccer event, a rugby event or the grand final we are able to stage those events, and to do them at reasonably short notice.”

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