A new stand at Launceston’s UTAS Stadium has been completed, giving an extra 1,500 fans a seat close to the action.
The Western Stand is part of a $130 million redevelopment of the ground, jointly funded by the federal and state governments.
The new seating fills previously unused space between the stand and the pitch, with wider concourses and 39 accessible seating areas.
Capacity will reach about 17,500 once the Eastern and Centre-West stands are finished next year, with the redevelopment due to be completed in November 2027.
The stadium will become the second home of the Tasmania Devils when the team enters the AFL in 2028.
The project has created 566 jobs and is being built by local company Fairbrother.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff said the upgrade had doubled the accessible seating in the area.
“Everyone has that fundamental right to not only enjoy the footy enjoy their sport, which this is a wonderful arena but also the entertainment as well,” he said.
Rockliff said he and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese had announced the upgrade on the same ground just over three and a half years ago.
He said AFL participation in Tasmania had grown from about 17,000 participants at the time to more than 28,000, passing a target set for 2028.
“Our young kids being enthusiastic, aspirational, young boys and girls, men and women embracing the opportunity of playing for the Devils one day or getting really excited about participating in their local footy team as well,” he said.
Rockliff said the ground would also host more concerts, where people “can be well and truly accommodated and safely so”.
Albanese said the upgrade would draw visitors to northern Tasmania.
“People who come to Launceston for the footy as well don’t just come for the day,” he said.
He said research done when the Rudd government funded the ground’s first upgrade found footy visitors stayed about four days on average.
“Just as this has been a fortress for my team, the Hawks, for a long period of time, I’m sure it will become a fortress for the Tasmanian Devils as well,” Albanese said.
He said whether Hawthorn keeps playing at the ground was a matter for the AFL and the Tasmanian government.
“Personally, I loved seeing Hawthorn play here,” he said.
Stadiums Tasmania chief executive James Avery said the upgrades would ensure the Devils “have somewhere to play successfully in 2028 onwards”.
He said the ground would also attract more events, after the Foo Fighters played there earlier this year.
“Stadiums Tasmania continues to be in discussions with a whole range of content providers, specifically off the back of this project,” he said.
