Canberra is hoping to attract more Hyundai A-League teams as part of a multi-million dollar upgrade by the University of Canberra (UC) to improve its sporting facilities.
A report in the Canberra Times newspaper on Monday outlined UC’s plans to invite Capital Football to make the campus’ sporting hub their home when they add a football stadium to their state-of-the-art facilities.
With Super Rugby club ACT Brumbies already calling the Bruce Campus home, Capital Football have been asked to invest $5 million to help produce a purpose-built football venue.
The federal and ACT governments, the university and other Canberra sporting bodies would also contribute to the boutique football venue.
‘‘We would love to have something at the University of Canberra that can fill the gap between the big venues and the small venues,’’ Capital Football chief executive Heather Reid said.
‘‘McKellar and Deakin are our only two soccer-specific venues in Canberra.
“If we’re going to grow and attract more A-League teams to play in Canberra, or stage more FFA Cup games, then we need a venue with a greater capacity.
“There’s nothing in between the smaller venues and then Canberra Stadium.”
The new facility will have television-quality lighting, which means it can host Hyundai A-League pre-season fixtures as well as potentially more Westfield FFA Cup matches.
It will also be the home of Capital Football and Westfield W-League team Canberra United.
It’s understood the new football pitch will take just under 15 months to complete once construction starts.
