The AFL has today announced that the 2021 AFL Grand Final will be played at Optus Stadium in Perth due to the ongoing Victorian COVID-19 restrictions preventing the MCG from hosting the match.
The AFL Grand Final, scheduled for Saturday September 25, will be held in Western Australia for the first time after The Gabba in Brisbane hosted the event in 2020.The relocation of the 2021 match will be the second year since 1991 that the MCG will not host the AFL Grand Final, and the second time it has been played outside Victoria.
Stuart Fox, Chief Executive of the Melbourne Cricket Club, manager of the MCG, said it was heartbreaking not to host the AFL Grand Final for a second straight year.
“The MCG, the MCC and VFL/AFL Grand Finals have been intrinsically linked for over a century – it’s part of the MCG’s DNA – so it’s incredibly disappointing not to host the 2021 event,” Mr Fox said.
“We have explored and exhausted all available opportunities to be able to host this year’s Grand Final, however the current landscape in Victoria precludes us from welcoming members and fans into the MCG’s stands.
“We feel for everyone in the MCG community, including MCC members, club members, footy fans and stakeholders who love to watch greatness come to life on the hallowed turf. And our dedicated workforce who thrive on delivering the AFL’s showcase event each September.
“We wish the AFL and Optus Stadium all the very best in hosting the 2021 AFL Grand Final and we look forward to watching their efforts from afar,” he said.
Hosting the AFL Grand Final at the MCG is part of a long-term three-way agreement between the MCC, AFL and the Victorian Government. The renegotiation of the agreement will see MCG host the AFL Grand Final up until at least 2059 with additional AFL matches being scheduled at the ground in the Premiership Seasons through to 2026.
AFL Chief Executive Gillon McLachlan thanked the Victorian Government, the MCC and footy fans across the country for their continued support and patience during an uncertain period in the community.
“On behalf of the AFL, I want to thank the Victorian Government, led by Premier Daniel Andrews and Sports Minister Martin Pakula, and the Melbourne Cricket Club for their continued partnership and support for football from the community level all the way through to the elite,” Mr McLachlan said.
“Today’s announcement is not what any football loving Victorian wanted to hear but the health and safety of the wider community has been a priority throughout this season and must continue to be the priority as we all navigate through this pandemic.
“We will be back at the MCG, bigger and better in 2022. I do want to acknowledge our supporters who have stuck by the game and stuck by their clubs in record numbers throughout the uncertainty this year. The connection they have with their clubs is unmatched in world sport.”
The MCG has hosted 112 VFL/AFL Grand Finals and three replays over 1902-1941, 1946-1990 and 1992-2019, including Grand Final replays in 1948, 1977 and 2010.
Waverley Park hosted its first and only AFL Grand Final in 1991 due to the construction of the MCG’s Great Southern Stand. In that match, Hawthorn defeated the West Coast Eagles by 53 points in front of 75,230 crowd.
In the 2021 AFL Premiership Season, the MCG has hosted 42 matches,30 of those with fans in attendance.
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