Tasmania’s new $1.13 billion stadium will not be ready for AFL matches until the 2031 season, the Macquarie Point Development Corporation (MPDC) has confirmed.
The timeline means the Tasmania Devils will play their first three AFL seasons at Hobart’s Bellerive Oval and Launceston’s York Park after entering the league in 2028.
MPDC chief executive Anne Beach told ABC Radio construction was on track for completion by late 2030, but the venue would need additional time before hosting matches.
“It’s important to the delivery of the stadium that we don’t just get it to practical completion but also make sure that it’s ready for play,” she said.
“There’s things we need to allow time for and consider, like the laying of the turf and allowing time for that turf to establish.”
Beach said she “wouldn’t anticipate” the project being delivered ahead of the 2031 season due to “the size, the scale and the complexity of the structure”.
The funding agreement between the state government and the AFL allows the deal to be terminated if the stadium isn’t built by the end of 2030 – a deadline Beach said remained achievable.
An almost $2 million test rig has been installed at Macquarie Point to assess the stadium’s signature translucent ETFE roof.
The dome was a non-negotiable AFL requirement but sparked concerns from cricket bodies about dangerous shadows over the pitch.
Those fears have been addressed by applying a matte finish to the roof’s bottom layer, which diffuses light and eliminates sharp shadow patterns.
Cricket Tasmania chief executive Dominic Baker said early testing results were “fantastic”.
“We haven’t played cricket under a roof of this type before, so what we’re trying to prove is that it’s a safe environment for batters, bowlers, fielders,” he said.
Macquarie Point Urban Renewal Minister Eric Abetz said concerns the venue would host only seven AFL games a year and nothing else had been “well and truly dispelled”.
“It’s going to be genuinely multi-purpose,” he said.
The main stadium construction contractor will be announced by the end of the year, with building work expected to begin in mid-2027.
