Sydney Showground Stadium

File: RAS Grand Parade 2001 composite.jpg

The stadium was constructed as part of the development of the new Sydney Showground, it was built to replace the aging Showground at Moore Park and to provide a venue for the 2000 Summer Olympics.

A $65 million upgrade of the stadium to accommodate the GWS Giants was announced on 9 June 2010. Jointly funded by the NSW Government, the AFL and the RAS, the upgrade included two new stands which increased seating capacity from 13,000 to 25,000 (the stadium seated 13,000 but its full pre-redevelopment capacity was listed as 21,500), upgraded hospitality facilities, improved audio and sound systems and new media facilities.[http://www.sydneyshowground.com.au/corporate/faqs.html New Stadium: FAQs] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111030191657/http://www.sydneyshowground.com.au/corporate/faqs.html |date=30 October 2011 }} The playing surface was also reconfigured. The upgrade was officially opened on 23 May 2012.{{cite web|url=http://www.sopa.nsw.gov.au/resource_centre/park_news/2011_park_news/$65_million_redeveloped_sydney_showground_stadium_opens|title=$65 million redeveloped Sydney Showground Stadium opens|website=www.sopa.nsw.gov.au|access-date=25 October 2018|archive-date=25 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181025190041/https://www.sopa.nsw.gov.au/resource_centre/park_news/2011_park_news/$65_million_redeveloped_sydney_showground_stadium_opens|url-status=dead}}

The RAS is seeking funding from the New South Wales Government to expand the stadium as part of a major upgrade of the Showground precinct.{{cite news|title=The RAS is seeking funding from the New South Wales Government to expand the stadium to a 30,000-seat venue as part of a major upgrade of the Showground precinct.|url=http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/sydney-thunder-and-gws-giants-join-call-for-spotless-stadium-upgrade/news-story/188deeb3113362865975987867d6d7ce?nk=6b033a84cf23c83939b7b4898c17baa9-1465591321|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231203230620/https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/sydney-thunder-and-gws-giants-join-call-for-spotless-stadium-upgrade/news-story/188deeb3113362865975987867d6d7ce?nk=6b033a84cf23c83939b7b4898c17baa9-1465591321|url-status=dead|archive-date=3 December 2023|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=10 May 2016}} It has targeted a total post-extension capacity of 30,000 seats but is considering revising the target capacity to 35,000 seats.{{cite news|last1=Horne|first1=Ben|title=Increasing capacity of Spotless Stadium to 35,000 in pipeline so fans won't be turned away|url=http://www.news.com.au/sport/afl/gws-giants/increasing-capacity-of-spotless-stadium-to-35000-in-pipeline-so-fans-wont-be-turned-away/news-story/1b9f11bf82fd5592e5e0ace278939b0b?nk=1b15d20520d1705e2a9e7d63f5301e22-1477397739|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=21 September 2016}}

Following its redevelopment, the venue was known as Škoda Stadium from 2012 until 2013 in a deal with car manufacturer Škoda, then as Spotless Stadium from 2014 until 2018 in a deal with cleaning and catering company Spotless Group Holdings. From 2019 to 2024, it was known as Giants Stadium in a deal with its primary AFL tenant, the Greater Western Sydney Giants, making the club the only one in the league to play in a self-branded venue;{{cite web|url=https://aflnswact.com.au/giants-stadium/|title=GIANTS announce new stadium deal|date=22 March 2019|accessdate=24 April 2021|publisher=AFL NSW/ACT}}{{cite web |date=22 March 2019 |title=This is GIANTS Stadium |url=https://www.gwsgiants.com.au/news/2019-03-22/this-is-giants-stadium |access-date=22 April 2022 |publisher=GWS Giants}} the Giants name was stylised in all caps as GIANTS Stadium, consistent with the manner in which the club self-styles its name in all media.{{cite web|url=https://www.afl.com.au/news/2018-04-09/shout-it-out-loud-here-come-the-giants|title=Name changer: Have the Giants dropped GWS?|date=9 April 2018|access-date=3 August 2019|publisher=Australian Football League|author=Matt Thompson}} In March 2024, the venue became known as Engie Stadium under a three-year naming rights deal with energy company Engie. In May 2024, the original stadium lighting system was replaced with LED lights at a cost of $4 million.{{cite web|title=LED lighting upgrade for Engie Stadium|url=https://www.austadiums.com/news/1381/led-lighting-upgrade-for-engie-stadium|website=austadiums.com|publisher=Austadiums|access-date=18 May 2024}}

File:Giants vs Essendon (35102501025).jpg game]]

The venue is the primary home ground for The Greater Western Sydney Giants.{{cite web|title=Giants Stadium|url=http://www.austadiums.com/stadiums/stadiums.php?id=115|website=austadiums.com|publisher=Austadiums|access-date=22 April 2022}} The club played its first game at the stadium on Saturday, 26 May 2012, Round 9 of the 2012 AFL season.{{cite web|url=http://www.afl.com.au/Fixtures/tabid/10586/Default.aspx|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081217010451/http://www.afl.com.au/fixtures/tabid/10586/default.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-date=17 December 2008|title=AFL Fixture 2012|access-date=25 October 2018}} In front of a crowd of 11,887 the Giants lost the match against {{AFL Ess}} by 66 points. The Giants' first win at the stadium occurred on 4 August that year, when they defeated {{AFL|PA}} by 34 points. On 24 September 2016, the ground hosted its first ever AFL finals game with the Giants losing to the {{AFL WB}} by six points in a close preliminary final.

The Sydney Thunder played two games at the stadium during the 2014–15 Big Bash League season when ANZ Stadium was unavailable due to the 2015 AFC Asian Cup.{{cite news|last1=Adno|first1=Carly|title=Sydney Thunder to play two BBL fixtures at Sydney Showground when ANZ Stadium hosts Asia Cup matches|url=http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/cricket/sydney-thunder-to-play-two-bbl-fixtures-at-sydney-showground-when-anz-stadium-hosts-asia-cup-matches/story-fn6w5t7q-1226967716059?nk=0910b7a99fc2844b1b669b710dd01cc7|access-date=26 June 2014|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=26 June 2014}} In June 2015, the Sydney Thunder announced a 10-year agreement to play all home games at Sydney Showground Stadium until the 2024–25 BBL season.[http://www.sydneythunder.com.au/news/2015/06/24/sydney-thunder-announce-spotless-stadium-as-new-home-ground Sydney Thunder Announce Spotless Stadium As New Home Ground] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924112707/http://www.sydneythunder.com.au/news/2015/06/24/sydney-thunder-announce-spotless-stadium-as-new-home-ground |date=24 September 2015 }}

The opening Sydney Derby of the fifth season (2015–16) of BBL attracted record audience, with more than 1.5 million people tuning in for this match between the Sydney Thunder and the Sydney Sixers.[http://www.cricket.com.au/news/big-bash-league-tv-ratings-bbl-sydney-sixers-sydney-thunder/2015-12-18 #SydneySmash breaks ratings record] cricket.com.au. Retrieved on 18 Dec 2015 On 28 December 2015, Sydney Thunder defeated Adelaide Strikers at the stadium in front of 21,500 spectators.

The stadium hosted several games of the 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup.

The stadium hosted the Sydney Storm in the Australian Baseball League for the 1998 and 1999 championship. During the Olympics, it was known as the Sydney Baseball Stadium and was the main baseball venue. The gold medal game played in front of 14,107 saw the USA, managed by Tommy Lasorda, a former two time World Series winning manager with the Los Angeles Dodgers, defeated defending champions Cuba 4–0 to win their first ever Olympic gold medal in baseball.{{cite web|url=http://library.la84.org/6oic/OfficialReports/2000/Masters/bb/BBresults.pdf|title=Boxscore|access-date=25 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170610165716/http://library.la84.org/6oic/OfficialReports/2000/Masters/bb/BBresults.pdf|archive-date=10 June 2017|url-status=dead}}

Since the Olympics, no other baseball game has been played at the venue. Other Olympic events hosted were the riding and running portion of the modern pentathlon competitions.[http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/2000/2000v1.pdf 2000 Summer Olympics official report.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20001109071400/http://www.olympics.com/eng/ |date= 9 November 2000 }} Volume 1. p. 371.

In 2001, the Canterbury Bulldogs of the NRL moved some of their home games to the stadium, playing there until 2005 when they moved to full-time ANZ Stadium. During this period, the ground hosted two finals matches, a 2001 Qualifying Final where the Bulldogs defeated St. George Illawarra Dragons 23-22 in front of 17,975, and a 2003 Qualifying Final where the New Zealand Warriors defeated the Bulldogs 48-22.

File:WesternSydneyWanderersAtSydneyShowground.jpg game]]

The Western Sydney Wanderers played most of their homes games at the stadium during the 2016–17 A-League season while Parramatta Stadium was rebuilt.{{cite web |last=Hassett |first=Sebastian |date=29 March 2016 |title=Western Sydney Wanderers lock in Sydney Olympic Park for home matches next season |url=https://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer/western-sydney-wanderers-lock-in-sydney-olympic-park-for-home-matches-next-season-20160329-gntatk.html |access-date=25 October 2018 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald}} Home games against Sydney FC, Melbourne Victory and Perth Glory were played at the nearby ANZ Stadium.{{cite web |last=Stadium |first=ANZ |title=WANDERERS TO HOST BLOCKBUSTER ROUND 1 SYDNEY DERBY AT ANZ STADIUM - ANZ Stadium |url=https://www.anzstadium.com.au/footer/news-and-media/2016/wanderers-to-host-blockbuster-round-1-sydney-derby-at-anz-stadium/ |access-date=25 October 2018 |website=www.anzstadium.com.au}} The Wanderers played their first home game at the ground on 23 October 2016 against the Newcastle Jets.{{cite web |title=Fixtures – Western Sydney Wanderers Membership |url=http://www.wanderland.com.au/member-info/fixtures/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160730011759/http://www.wanderland.com.au/member-info/fixtures/ |archive-date=2016-07-30 |access-date=25 October 2018 |website=www.wanderland.com.au}}

The Showground became the new home of Australia's events in the men's and women's versions of the World Rugby Sevens Series effective with the 2018–19 seasons. This change was made because the Sydney Football Stadium, previously host to both events, was to be demolished to make way for a new stadium on the same site.{{cite press release|url=https://www.rugby.com.au/news/2018/05/25/sydney-sevens-sydney-olympic-park |title=Sydney 7s has a new home in 2019 |publisher=Rugby Australia |date=25 May 2018 |access-date=6 August 2018}}

As the Showground was originally built for both the Royal Easter Show and as a baseball venue, the field included a {{convert|450|m|yd|abbr=off}} long track that surrounded the playing field of the Stadium prior to its removal during the 2011–12 redevelopment. In the tradition of the Sydney Showground Speedway at Moore Park which ran speedway from 1926 until 1996, the track was used as a Speedway venue, mostly for motorcycle racing, though with limited success. In 2007 and 2008 the Stadium hosted a round of the Australian Solo Championships, just as the old Showground had done on 21 separate occasions between 1935 and 1980.{{cite web|url=http://www.vintagespeedway.com/Titles.html|title=Titles|website=www.vintagespeedway.com|access-date=25 October 2018}} The 2007 championship round, which was the opening round of a five-round series, was won by Australia's reigning Speedway World Champion Jason Crump, the son of Phil Crump who won the Australian title at the old Showground in 1975. Jason Crump would go on to win his second Aussie title in 2007, winning three of the five rounds (Sydney, Newcastle Showgrounds, and Borderline Speedway in Mount Gambier), while finishing second in Mildura (Olympic Park Speedway) and the Gillman Speedway in Adelaide.

The track, which was tight and narrow (a criticism in common with its predecessor) and almost square in shape, was also used for Speedcar racing, also with little success. When the Speedcars raced at the Showground, a temporary fence was put in place on the inside of the track to protect the grass surface from any out of control cars.

The first speedway meeting at the new Showground was held on 1 May 1999 and included an unofficial Solo "Test" between Australia and the United States, won easily by Australia. The program also featured Sidecars, as well as demonstration runs by restored vintage Speedcars and Modifieds which had raced at the old Showground. The speedway was officially opened by 15 time World Champion Ivan Mauger of New Zealand, and the "King of the Royale" (the old Showground Speedway), four time Australian Solo Champion Jim Airey.

In its present configuration, the stadium is a playing field running north east to south west. The south western half is surrounded by a single grandstand structure. Additional stands are located on either side of the field, directly adjacent the main structure. A single video screen is located at the north-eastern end. When it was installed, the screen was the largest at a stadium in the southern hemisphere,{{cite web|title=SKODA Stadium Sydney Showground|url=http://www.app.com.au/skoda-stadium-sydney-showground|publisher=APP|access-date=13 February 2014}}

The stands are:[http://www.afl.com.au/Portals/0/images/2012/GWS_Skoda%20Stadium%20Map%20-%20D.pdf afl.com.au]{{dead link|date=September 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{cite web |url=http://www.sydneyshowground.com.au/venues/documents/Site%20Map%20-%20Sydney%20Showground.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2014-09-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140912182438/http://www.sydneyshowground.com.au/venues/documents/Site%20Map%20-%20Sydney%20Showground.pdf |archive-date=12 September 2014}}

Opened 1998:

• Members Stand
• Suttor Stand
• Vincent Fairfax Stand
• Sinclair Stand
• Martin & Angus Stand

Opened 2012:

• Sydney Royal Stand
• Cumberland Stand

File:Sydney Showground Stadium panorama, March 2018.jpg configuration.]]

File:Sydney Showground Stadium 2015-8-9.jpg match.]]

Players

• Most games played: Callan Ward ({{AFL WB}}/{{AFL GWS}}), Lachie Whitfield ({{AFL GWS}}), 75
• Most goals kicked: Jeremy Cameron ({{AFL GWS}}/{{AFL Gee}}), 164
• Most goals kicked in a match: Jack Riewoldt ({{AFL Ric}}), 11.2 (68) vs. {{AFL GWS}}, 24 May 2014
• Most disposals in a match: Tom Mitchell ({{AFL Haw}}), 50 vs. {{AFL GWS}}, 30 June 2018

Teams

• Highest score: {{AFL Ade}} 29.13 (187) defeated {{AFL GWS}} 7.10 (52), 12 May 2013
• Lowest score: {{AFL GC}} 4.2 (26) defeated by {{AFL GWS}} 20.14 (134), 9 June 2018
• Biggest margin: {{AFL Ade}} defeated {{AFL GWS}}, 135 points, 12 May 2013
• Longest winning streak: {{AFL GWS}} (2015–16), 6 games

Last updated: 24 April 2024{{cite web|url=http://afltables.com/afl/venues/showground.html|title=AFL Tables - Sydney Showground|website=afltables.com|access-date=24 April 2024}}

^{Source: [https://www.austadiums.com/stadiums/stadiums_crowds.php?id=115 Austadiums] (2003 crowds onwards)}

^{Source: [https://afltables.com/afl/crowds/vn_showground.html AFL Tables]}

^{Source [https://www.austadiums.com/stadiums/stadiums_crowds.php?id=115 Austadiums]}

^{Last updated on 1 January 2017}

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