High flying Etihad Stadium

Celebrating 15 year of success, Melbourne’s Etihad Stadium has become one of the world’s most iconic, must-play venues for A-listers. But, as Eamonn Forde discovers, the stadium’s flexible configurations make it a viable choice for many other acts…

The turn of the millennium saw the opening of a new stadium in Melbourne that, 15 years on, remains the state-of-the-art leader in the country and a key component in the city’s claim to be both the music and sporting capital of Australia.

The building of the stadium was a catalyst for change in the city, revitalising an old part of town.

Construction started in 1997, under the working title of the Victoria Stadium. It may have gone through different naming partner relationships (Colonial Stadium, Telstra Dome), but the Etihad Stadium Stadium, as it is known today, is the gold standard for major sporting and entertainment events in not just Australia but the southern hemisphere.

The building of the stadium was a catalyst for change in the city, revitalising an old part of town. “The important point here was that the stadium was a new build and it was down in the area known as the Docklands, which was really a rundown area,” explains Paul Sergeant, the CEO of Melbourne Stadiums Limited, who took over running the Etihad in October 2012. “When this place was built, it stood out like a sore thumb. It was here on its own. You wouldn’t recognise [the area] now.”

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