NSW Premier Chris Minns has confirmed why the South Sydney Rabbitohs have been ‘blocked’ from returning to Moore Park.
After spending the past two decades hosting NRL games at Sydney Olympic Park, many fans want to see their team play closer to their training base at Maroubra.
The foundation club were keen to move home games to Allianz Stadium – the same venue as their bitter rivals, the Sydney Roosters, as well as Sydney FC and the NSW Waratahs.
‘We don’t want to block anyone, but the club entered into a commercial arrangement out at Homebush for a number of years,’ Minns told SEN.
‘It would cost taxpayers about $14.5 million (we think) to break that contract.
‘The reason for that is, once Homebush Stadium knows they’ve got a tenant like South Sydney for home games, they sell corporate suites.
‘They lease out the contract or the concession for food and drink and beverages and everything else.
‘If all of a sudden the (NSW) government says, ‘I know that they had a five-year contract for Homebush, but we’re not going to do that anymore,’ we then have to pay, probably in cash, with the vendors that we had arrangements with.’
Minns also felt it was important the Rabbitohs see out their deal, which is believed to end in 2030.
‘It’s not my money, it’s taxpayer money. I’d love to be able to do it, grant the request for Souths to move back to Moore Park, but I think the contract’s got to be honoured,’ he added.
‘The minister’s speaking with South Sydney about a potential way through it, because if there’s an uplift at Moore Park, maybe it can offset the costs at Olympic Park.
‘But it’s a difficult one to navigate.’
In 2022 after Allianz Stadium was reopened following an $828 million upgrade, South Sydney CEO Blake Solly stated: ‘Our preference has always been to stay at Accor Stadium, but if the government is not going to upgrade it….then we should be allowed to move,’ he said.
The Bunnies left Moore Park for Stadium Australia – as Accor Stadium used to be known – in 2005 to grow their membership. They also signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) committing to remain at the venue for the long-term.
The agreement was contingent on the NSW government’s pledge to permanently turn the Homebush venue into a rectangular stadium.
But the state government instead opted to direct funds towards the redevelopment of Allianz Stadium and other suburban grounds.
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