The MCG holds 100,000 spectators, but only 30,000 AFL Grand Final tickets are allocated to competing club members. That’s only 30 per cent.
In comparison, the FA Cup in England is played at Wembley Stadium, which has a capacity of 90,000. FA Cup Final teams are allocated 57,464 tickets, which is 64 per cent of the total allocation and more than double the AFL’s 30 per cent.
The issue here is deep passion (fans) vs. deep pockets (corporates). Surely allocating 50,000 tickets to the fans of the competing teams is not too much to ask?
Or are the dollars more important?
The break up is 30,000 to competing clubs, 25,000 to MCC members, 21,000 to AFL members, 7000 to other clubs and 17,000 to the corporates and other stakeholders. The legitimacy of that 17,000 is highly questionable. Corporate backers already get a pretty good bang for their buck. Is this not one occasion where the AFL could insist that there’s a fundamental principle involved of allowing paid-up, passionate members of the grand final clubs to have a decent chance of getting there to see their team?
Rohan Connolly
You turn up to each game, week in week out, year in year out. You fly interstate when you can to see a game. You attend the VFL or other state league games. You attend club functions. Your team finally makes a grand final and you’re told you can’t attend because someone with corporate connections, who is attending their first game for the year, possibly first game ever, has taken a seat.. It’s pretty obvious what’s wrong here!
Adrian Booker
LINKS
The AFL must allocate more grand final tickets to members of competing clubs
