Crowd return gives Canberra a Giant AFL hope of hosting games

ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr spoke to the Giants on Friday about a potential spring-time return to Manuka Oval if crowd numbers increase in the coming months.

The ACT Brumbies and Canberra Raiders have been cleared to have crowds of up to 2000 people from the start of July, with plans to increase those numbers if there is no evidence of coronavirus spread.

The ACT government has paused the match-fee component, believed to be $400,000 per match, of its 10-year, $23 million deal when the AFL season was halted after just one game this year.

The Giants were initially scheduled to play the Western Bulldogs in Canberra on April 3, the Gold Coast Suns on April 26 and the Brisbane Lions on August 1.

The AFL reallocated games after its COVID-19 shutdown and Canberra was left off the Giants' fixture list.

That could change pending travel and large-gathering restrictions. The Federal government has given approval of stadiums with a capacity of 40,000 or fewer to fill 25 per cent of their seats. Manuka Oval has about 15,000 seats in an AFL configuration.

Barr has said hosting games would need to be economically viable, meaning crowd numbers would need to increase to make paying the Giants worthwhile. A match-fee payment could be scaled back in line with the amount of spectators allowed into the venue.

"We're working with the Giants and the AFL on that," Barr said. "I had a conversation with them this morning. I think we would be looking at late August or September.

"The pleasing element of the discussion would be the match fee payments would be scaled to reflect the size of the crowd. If it's only 3000, and that's 15 to 20 per cent of the capacity of the venue, then the match fee would be reduced to reflect that circumstance.

"We're hopeful we will be able to bring an AFL game or two to Canberra. It will probably be in spring."

A late-season opportunity will be music to the ears of Canberra AFL fans, who shivered through snow on a sub-zero match between the Giants and Hawks last year.

The Giants are in the second last year of their 10-year partnership with the government, and the parties have already started negotiations about extending the arrangement to play games in Canberra. It was hoped the Giants and government would agree to a new deal this year, but the coronavirus pandemic has delayed the process.

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A Giants spokesperson said: "We are looking forward to continuing discussions with the ACT Government about how and when we might be able to bring AFL games to Canberra later this season."

The AFL has only announced a schedule of games until round five to give officials time to assess interstate travel restrictions, venue availability and the potential of having crowds at games.

The AFL is expected to publish the next block of games at the end of this weekend. It's unlikely Canberra will be included in those games, with Barr preferring to wait as long as possible in a bid to increase crowd numbers.

The Raiders and Brumbies will play in Canberra on back to back nights in July, with the Raiders returning to the capital and the Brumbies launching a new Super Rugby AU competition.