Docklands Stadium

Docklands Stadium under construction in December 1998

Plans for the stadium were announced in October 1996 as a more centrally located replacement for the much larger but ageing Waverley Park as a headquarters for the Australian Football League.[7] It was built in the Melbourne Docklands to the immediate west of the CBD, a central but largely deserted industrial area which had just begun its own urban renewal project. Construction of the stadium by Baulderstone began in October 1997 under the working name "Victoria Stadium",[8] and was completed ahead of the 2000 AFL season. The stadium was originally developed by the Docklands Stadium Consortium and thereafter controlled by the Seven Network. The remaining leasehold interest in the stadium was sold to James Fielding Funds Management in June 2006 for A$330 million.[9]

The stadium, like Waverley Park, was built primarily for Australian rules football, unlike most grounds of a similar size in Australia which were originally designed for cricket then later developed for football. It was the first Australian rules football stadium built with a retractable roof, which throughout its history has usually been closed for night matches and for wet weather day matches, and sometimes for dry weather day matches. It was the first stadium in Australia to have movable seating. All four level-one tiers of the stadium can be moved up to 18 metres forward into a rectangular configuration. Despite this being a key feature of the stadium design, it has rarely been used, due to damage to turf, time to deploy the seats, and a reduced capacity, since the corner bays of the stadium become unavailable in rectangular configuration.

Construction was finished only weeks before the first match, and some scheduled pre-season matches were relocated as a result.[10] The first match to be played at the ground was between Essendon and Port Adelaide, before a crowd of 43,012, on 9 March 2000. Essendon won the match by 94 points, and Michael Long kicked the first goal at the ground.[11][5] The game was to have been played under the closed roof, but due to technical issues it remained open. Six days later, Barbra Streisand staged the venue's first concert.[12] The stadium's third football game, between Western Bulldogs and Brisbane Lions on 19 March, was the first to be played under the roof.[10] On 16 August 2000, the world's first indoor One Day International was held at the venue between Australia and South Africa. The first game played in the rectangular configuration was a Melbourne Storm game in July 2001. The first Soccer match played was in Round 5 2001 of the National Soccer League between South Melbourne FC and Melbourne Knights FC.[13]

The interior of Docklands Stadium with the roof closed in 2022

From the beginning, the stadium's playing surface was criticised for its slipperiness, hardness and lack of grass coverage, and the increased risk of injury that this causes to players.[14] Maintaining surface quality remains one of the stadium's biggest challenges.[15] The stadium's orientation and highly built-up grandstands mean that the Northern end of the stadium in particular receives only 6 weeks of sunlight a year. Concerts held at the stadium are also usually placed at the Southern end due to the ability for grass to recover more quickly.[16] The entire surface undergoes regular, expensive replacement during the season with turf grown externally, under contract by HG Turf, whereas the responsibility of laying and managing the turf lies with Docklands Stadium management.[17] Since 2007, elaborate heating and lighting to better allow grass to be grown and managed within the stadium have been in use.[16]

The venue was damaged by a thunderstorm in March 2010 during the 2010 Victorian storms. The external roof at Gate 2 caved in, causing damage and flooding inside the entertainment area. That evening's pre-season match between St Kilda and Fremantle was delayed due to WorkSafe inspections, but it still went ahead before a small crowd of 5,000.[18]

Marvel Stadium pictured from above (February 2019)

In 2015, LED electronic advertising was added around the perimeter of the ground on level 1 and 2, as well as a strip synthetic turf around the edge of the fence, outside the boundary line. The synthetic strip was narrowed after Brisbane Lions player Michael Close suffered a season ending ACL injury on the uneven surface during a game in 2015.[19][20]

The stadium became unpopular with many of its tenant clubs, especially St Kilda, North Melbourne and Western Bulldogs, as high operating costs and the high proportion of gate revenues which were paid back to the stadium meant that clubs earned much lower returns for a game at Docklands than they would have earned from the same attendance at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. At least 20,000 spectators were usually required to break even on a game.[21] Those three clubs all received compensation payments from the AFL to balance the weak deals,[22] and sold occasional home matches to small interstate or international venues for greater financial returns than they could earn at Docklands.[23]

The stadium and broader precinct will undergo a $225 million redevelopment, funded by the AFL and Victorian Government, to be constructed between 2021 and 2024.[24][25][26] This included two new video screens, which hang underneath the stadium's roof and were installed behind the goal at each end of the stadium ahead of the 2022 AFL season.[25] The rest of the redevelopment will upgrade stadium infrastructure, connect the precinct to the Melbourne CBD and open up access to the Docklands waterfront.[26][27]

Under the terms of the agreement governing construction and operation of the venue, in 2025 the AFL was to win ownership of the stadium for a nominal $30 fee;[28] but the AFL Commission opted to purchase exclusive ownership of the stadium earlier than this, in October 2016, for approximately $200 million.[6] This purchase left the stadium's tenant AFL clubs millions of dollars better off, as they and the AFL arranged more favourable tenancy agreements.[23] The stadium was eventually integrated into the AFL structure several years later, ending the independent management of the venue by Melbourne Stadiums Limited.[27]

The purchase also soon proved critically important to the AFL's finances during the COVID-19 pandemic, when it was able to leverage its ownership of the stadium in obtaining a $500–600 million line of credit to cover cash flow shortages when the 2020 AFL season was suspended.[29]

As of 2021, five AFL teams have deals in place to play home games at Docklands Stadium:[38]

• St Kilda – ten home games per year. The club has played almost all home games at the venue since it opened in 2000.[10]
• Western Bulldogs – nine home games per year. The club has played almost all home games at the venue since it opened in 2000.[10]
• North Melbourne – seven home games per year. The venue has been the club's primary home ground since 2005, but it had previously played about five games per year from 2000 to 2004.
• Essendon – seven home games per year. The club has a 25-year deal, which has been in place since the stadium opened in 2000.[10]
• Carlton – five or six home games per year under deals in place since 2005.[39]

All Victorian-based AFL teams, including those not listed here, have played some home games at the ground during its history, owing to a contractual requirement between the AFL and the stadium's original owners to stage at least 46 AFL matches per year until 2013, and 40 matches per year thereafter. Geelong and Collingwood both had deals to play around four home matches per year during the 2000s;[10] and most other clubs still play one or two home matches there per year to make up the numbers.

In 2020, to mark 20 years of AFL football at the ground, the AFL named the 20 biggest moments and stories involving games played at the stadium in a video.[40] The top 5 were as follows:

1. Jason McCartney's AFL return after nearly dying in the 2002 Bali bombings – North Melbourne vs Richmond, Round 11 (6 June), 2003
2. Lance Franklin completing a 100-goal season in 2008 – Hawthorn vs Carlton, Round 22 (30 August), 2008
3. Wayne Carey's return to face North Melbourne after his extramarital scandal involving former teammate Anthony Stevens – North Melbourne vs Adelaide, Round 6 (2 May), 2003
4. James Hird leading a final-quarter comeback with 15 touches and the winning goal – Essendon vs West Coast, Round 3 (10 April), 2004
5. St Kilda and Geelong facing off after both clubs started the 2009 season 13–0, the latest meeting of unbeaten teams in a season – St Kilda vs Geelong, Round 14 (5 July), 2009

The venue's major summer tenant is Big Bash League side Melbourne Renegades, which has played its home games at the Docklands Stadium since the league's inception in 2011/12. A drop-in pitch is used to facilitate cricket at the venue. At the end of the 2016/17 Big Bash, the stadium was rated the most entertaining venue for T20 cricket in Australia.[41]

In 2016, Chris Gayle of the Renegades and the West Indies tied the record for the fastest T20 half century (12 balls) during the last round of BBL 5 at the ground against the Adelaide Strikers.[42]

Although rare, multiple players have hit the roof during a game, which is 38 metres (125 feet) above the playing surface.[43] For example, in 2018, Perth Scorchers batsman Ashton Turner hit a Dan Christian delivery into the roof; under the BBL rules, such a hit is considered to be six runs, with the ball being considered dead and unable to be caught for the purpose of getting the batsman out.[44]

The first time it was used for Soccer was in 2001 between South Melbourne and Melbourne Knights in the NSL. A-League team Melbourne Victory played home matches at the stadium between 2006–07 and 2020–21. Originally, the plan was that the stadium would only be used for games against its biggest rivals, Sydney FC, in the 2006–07 A-League; but after the success of that game, the club shifted permanently from Olympic Park Stadium to Docklands from the 2006–07 season until the 2009–10 season. This gave the stadium its first major summer tenant. After the opening of the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium in 2010, the club played only high-drawing games and finals at Docklands, with all other games being played at the new stadium; and as of the 2022–23 season, Victory ceased playing home matches at the stadium.[45]

In the 2001 National Rugby League season, the stadium was the permanent home ground for the Melbourne Storm, but this deal lasted only one year. The club occasionally hosted high-drawing home games and finals at Docklands after that, including their first three home games of the 2010 NRL season while awaiting the completion of their then new home ground AAMI Park. In 2023, the Storm returned to play two games at the ground, while AAMI Park was unavailable in July–August due to the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.[46]

Docklands has also hosted interstate and international rugby league games. As Telstra Dome, Docklands hosted its first State of Origin game in 2006 as it hosted the deciding third game. New South Wales arrived looking for a win that would secure their fourth consecutive Origin victory and led 14–4 with 10 minutes to go, but Queensland scored two converted tries in the space of five minutes – first Brent Tate's long-range try after a line break from Johnathan Thurston and then Darren Lockyer intercepting a Brett Hodgson pass inside New South Wales' own half – to win 16–14 for the first of an eventual 8 consecutive Queensland victories.

As Etihad Stadium, the stadium also hosted Origin games in 2009 and 2012. The 2012 match attracted 56,021, a new record for rugby league at the stadium.[47]

The stadium has been converted to host several other sporting events. In its early years, the stadium was used for off-season one day international cricket matches, but has also held some summer matches, particularly in 2006 when the Melbourne Cricket Ground was unavailable due to preparations for the 2006 Commonwealth Games. The venue has also hosted international rugby union – including being Melbourne's venue during the 2003 Rugby World Cup – although the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium now hosts most such games. The venue has hosted international basketball,[48] Rugby 7s at the 2006 Commonwealth Games,[36] a 2002 non-televised WWE[49][50] live event[51][52] as part of the WWE Global Warning Tour: Melbourne, the 2015 UFC 193[53] in front of a then-record UFC attendance of 56,214 fans,[54] a motorcycle speedway event (when it played host to the 2015 Speedway Grand Prix of Australia on a 346 metres (378 yards) long temporary track), and a controversial international darts event in 2015 in which spectators seated on the arena started throwing chairs and furniture.[55]

Outside of sporting events, the stadium hosts special events and concerts. RMIT University uses the stadium as the site for its graduation ceremonies annually.

• Most games played: Nick Riewoldt (St Kilda), 184
• Most goals kicked: Nick Riewoldt (St Kilda), 452
• Most goals kicked in a match: Mark LeCras (West Coast), 12.2 (74), vs Essendon 17 July 2010
• Most disposals in a match: Tom Rockliff (Brisbane Lions), 48 vs Carlton, 4 June 2016; and Patrick Dangerfield, 48 vs North Melbourne, 11 June 2016
• First AFL goal kicked: Michael Long (Essendon), 9 March 2000

• Highest winning percentage: Geelong at 66.50% from 68 wins, 34 losses and one draw
• Lowest winning percentage: Gold Coast at 27.27% from 9 wins, 24 losses
• Most wins: St Kilda with 160 wins, 6 draws and 126 losses at 55.82%
• Highest score: Geelong 35.12 (222) defeated Richmond 9.11 (65), 6 May 2007
• Lowest score: Adelaide 2.9 (21) defeated by Essendon 11.18 (84), 9 July 2021
• Highest margin: Geelong (vs Richmond), 157 points, 6 May 2007
• Highest score in a quarter: Essendon 15.4 (94) vs. Gold Coast 0.1 (1), 1 May 2011

Last updated 28 August 2023.[56]

The following table summarises the ODI centuries scored at Docklands.

No.	Score	Player	Team	Balls	Inns.	Opposing team	Date	Result
1	106	Michael Bevan	Australia	125	1	South Africa	16 August 2000	Won
2	114*	Steve Waugh	Australia	103	1	South Africa	16 August 2000	Won
3	103	Adam Gilchrist	Australia	79	1	ICC World XI	7 October 2005	Won