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11 months ago
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The Brisbane Lions could play some home games in Perth in the four years they won't have access to the Gabba, which will demolished at the end of the 2025 season for a $2.6m redevelopment.
Lions chief executive Greg Swann confirmed there were already 'offers' for the Lions to sell some of their 44 home games during the 2026-2030 AFL seasons, with Perth and even Melbourne on the radar.
The Lions are yet to lock in their preferred playing venue, but Swann conceded there would be some 'pain' for local supporters with any venue, likely to be the Brisbane Showgrounds, unable to hold much more than 20,000 people.
He said Brisbane's membership, on the back of making the grand final in both the AFL and AFLW, would be more than 60,000 during those seasons.
The Lions (pictured just before this year's grand final) are looking for grounds to host their home games for four years - and some very surprising candidates are on the list
Stars like Eric Hipwood (pictured, front) could run out in front of crowds in Perth and Melbourne while the club waits for its new home to be built
'We have two more seasons at the Gabba then it gets bowled over. We are in discussions at the moment with the government about where we play in the interim,' Swann said on Wednesday.
'It's going to be a four-year hiatus. That's a long time to be out of mainstream grounds. No matter where we go, the ground is only going to hold low 20s [thousands]. We are going to get a membership of 60,000 plus, so we have some challenges in that space.
'The code is flying, we had seven sellouts last season. Our membership is up 25 per cent. The upside is you turn into a brand new 55,000-seat stadium. We fill it pretty regularly and pretty easily.
'But it's going to create some pain on the way through. Now the government has made a commitment about the Gabba, we are hoping we can get a commitment on where we are going to play.'
Pictured: An artist's impression of how the famous Gabba will look once it's been completely redeveloped in time for the 2032 Olympics
Lions fans won't be high-fiving each other over the news that any fill-in home ground in Brisbane will struggle to hold 20,000 supporters during the Gabba's extreme makeover
Swann and Lions coach Chris Fagan recently returned from an overseas trip where they visited new stadiums, including the home of English Premier League club Tottenham, where Australian Ange Postecoglou is coach.
Swann said the new Gabba would be 'special' and confirmed selling home games during the Lions' absence would be part of their plan to 'survive those four years we are not in there'.
'We've spoken about that,' he told SEN.
'There are some offers for us to maybe play one or two games elsewhere.
'We might take it to Perth or play it at the MCG. I don't know, but there are some options. There is a lot happening in that space, but we haven't bedded anything down.'
The Lions will open their 2024 campaign against Carlton at the Gabba on Friday, March 8.
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