WIN Stadium's redevelopment could help Wollongong grab a slice of the $5 billion World Cup pie if Australia is awarded the globe's biggest sporting tournament in 2018 or 2022.Planning is already underway to secure Wollongong as a training base for one of the 32 teams who will compete for soccer's greatest prize, with the potential to create a multimillion-dollar bonanza for the city.While WIN Stadium would be too small to host World Cup matches, it would be perfect as a training venue.
WIN Stadium to get $28.9mil makeoverOfficials from the Football Federation Australia World Cup organising committee visited playing facilities and accommodation in Wollongong, Shellharbour and northern Illawarra last month after Football South Coast applied to have a visiting team based in the Illawarra.Football South Coast chairman Eddy de Gabriele said the bid would be assessed by the committee and a decision made by May next year."They indicated that certainly they would like to support regional communities," he said.Hosting a team would be "just amazing, huge" and perhaps the biggest event the city would see, he said."You'd have the team, coaches, medicos, families, fans and other representatives from that country all based in the region ... potentially thousands of people," Mr de Gabriele said."They would stay for four weeks before the games, three weeks during and then one after, using our hotels and services."I understand in an event like that there's a multiplier of 10 for every dollar spent - so if you think 500 people spending $1000 each, which is very conservative, it's a massive amount," Mr de Gabriele said."Everyone who comes, comes here to live the life."Mr de Gabriele said Wollongong City Council supported the push, which if achieved would allow for events and community involvement on a scale never seen before."From what I've heard ... and if you look at the Socceroos at the last World Cup ... the team is adopted by the town and they attend functions and the town embraces the team and their culture. It's just huge."WIN Sports and Entertainment Centre's general manager Stuart Barnes said the soon-to-be-revamped arena - and Wollongong's proximity to Sydney - would make the region an ideal home for a visiting team."If we can have a team here for a month training and staying in the locality and playing friendly games, it would be great for us," he said.With World Cup venues - including the Sydney Football Stadium and ANZ Stadium at Homebush - to be locked out for up to eight weeks for the tournament, Mr Barnes said WIN Stadium could also host relocated NRL and rugby matches."I'm not sure how many games may be played here, but WIN Stadium would be an ideal venue," Mr Barnes said."We could definitely pick up some other games - that's the point of the new western grandstand."It's not just for the Dragons - it would allow us to get other events and activities." Although NRL games are regularly played in Wollongong, WIN Stadium is not considered up to Australian Rugby Union standards for elite contests. The $28.9 million redevelopment will increase WIN Stadium's capacity to 24,000, but that figure falls well short of the 40,000 required by FIFA for World Cup matches. The FFA discussed boosting WIN Stadium by 16,000 seats for the tournament, but the investigation didn't reach a costing stage. "It became plainly obvious temporary construction of an extra 16,000 seats was just not possible," Mr Barnes said.He also declared the upgrade was still on track despite Nathan Rees being replaced as NSW Premier last week.
