Background Victoria Park was traditionally a meeting and gathering place for Indigenous groups travelling through the area. The park over the years had hosted a migrant workers' camp, a
shanty town and a medical precinct. The park was named Victoria Park in 1875. The site had been long neglected for future development, as factors such as swampy grounds, unexploded ammunition from World War II, and previously used rubbish dumping grounds have posed safety risks and budget blow outs for projects on the site. Part of the park was converted into a golf course in 1931, but
Brisbane City Council developed plans in 2020 to convert the 64 hectare site back into a park.
Cancelled Gabba reconstruction On 24 February 2021, the Future Host Commission of the
International Olympic Committee selected Brisbane as its preferred candidate to host the
2032 Summer Olympics and
Paralympics; Brisbane were officially awarded the Games on 21 July. In April 2021, as part of its venue plans for the Games, the state of Queensland announced plans for a A$1 billion reconstruction of
the Gabba to serve as the main stadium. The reconstruction would expand its seating capacity to 50,000, and feature a new pedestrian plaza. Scrutiny over the Gabba project grew after the state of
Victoria withdrew from hosting the
2026 Commonwealth Games due to cost concerns; by February 2023, the projected cost had grown to A$2.7 billion, which would be paid entirely by the state. In December 2023, Lord Mayor of Brisbane
Adrian Schrinner withdrew his support for the Gabba project, stating that Brisbane 2032 had "become more about overpriced stadiums rather than the promise of vital transport solutions", and that parallel plans for a A$137 million stadium at the
Brisbane Showgrounds as a transitional venue for the Gabba's tenants during construction (with
Brisbane City Council, the
Brisbane Lions, and
Cricket Australia being expected to cover two thirds of the cost) were the "final straw". In March 2024, following an independent review launched by Queensland Premier
Steven Miles and led by former Lord Mayor
Graham Quirk, the Gabba project was scrapped in favour of refurbishing
Lang Park and
Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre (QSAC) to host the ceremonies and athletics respectively. A new stadium at Victoria Park was recommended by Quirk before being dismissed by the government due to its A$3.4 billion cost; Miles stated that he wanted Brisbane 2032 to be a "low-cost" games, and that he could not justify a high-cost stadium "when Queenslanders are
struggling with housing and other costs". Miles was skeptical of the proposal, arguing that there was "no chance" a stadium could be built solely through private funding and arguing that the plan appeared very preliminary. In September 2024, former politician and
Premier of Western Australia,
Colin Barnett, suggested during a talk show on
4BC that the Queensland government should consider building a copy of
Perth Stadium, which would save time and costs on building a new stadium from scratch, as well as giving Brisbane a modern replacement for the Gabba. Many Queenslanders had criticised the state government for choosing "embarrassing" and "cheapskate" approaches over a newly built showpiece. During the
2024 Queensland state election campaign, opposition
Liberal National leader
David Crisafulli promised to launch another independent review if elected, stating that Queenslanders had felt "embarrassed" by the decision to use QSAC (which would have been the smallest Olympic athletics venue since
1928), and that the state government had "locked themselves into a facility that does neither a long-term legacy nor create a world-class buzz." Crisafulli promised to not build a new stadium (and especially to not build one in Victoria Park), and was believed to be backing the Gabba project.
Stadium proposals Multiple proposals were submitted as part of the second review: •
Arcadis presented a proposal to build a new stadium and indoor arena at Victoria Park, and to build an aquatic centre on the site of the
Centenary Pool Complex. The overall project was budgeted at A$5.4 billion, which the firm argued was A$200 million cheaper than the combined costs of building the
Brisbane Live arena in its current state, and renovating the Gabba, Lang Park, and QSAC. Their proposal for the stadium emphasised that discussions had mainly centred around the "cost" of the games, rather than the long-term "value" for the city. The idea of a stadium at Victoria Park was backed by organising committee president Andrew Liveris. •
Richard Kirk Architect proposed the construction of a new 60,000 seat stadium dubbed "Gabba West" above the
Woolloongabba railway station, directly across the street from the existing Gabba ("Gabba East"); the outgoing stadium would be used as a practice and support facility during the Games, after which it would be demolished and redeveloped. Kirk argued that this option would create minimal disruption to the suburb, and would not result in the relocation of tenants or nearby buildings such as the
East Brisbane State School. Kirk proposed that 40% of the stadium's structure be constructed using renewable materials, and that it be the largest timber-braced stadium in the world. He also stated that unlike the Victoria Park proposals (as it would be built on existing greenfield land), "Gabba West" would be able to achieve a six-star
Green Star rating. •
WilkinsonEyre proposed a new 60,000 seat stadium built on the Mayne Yard, a
rail yard operated by
Queensland Rail. The construction of the stadium would require the relocation of the rail yard. The proposal was modelled after Perth Stadium, and included a warm-up track under the
spaghetti junction, a temporary indoor arena (instead of building the Brisbane Live arena) similar to the
Basketball Arena that was used for the
2012 Summer Olympics in
London, and a residential area. This project was considered to be more costly (expected to be A$6 billion) and logistically challenging compared to the other proposals. Former
Premier of Queensland Campbell Newman supported this proposal (along with the Northshore and Gabba proposals), arguing that the Victoria Park plan would lead to a major loss of green space in the city centre.
Victoria Park stadium project On 25 March 2025, Premier Crisafulli announced that as a result of the review, a new 63,000-seat stadium would be constructed at Victoria Park to host the ceremonies and athletics. After the conclusion of the Games, the Gabba will be demolished and its site will be redeveloped as a residential neighbourhood; the Olympic stadium will succeed it as Brisbane's main football and cricket stadium. According to the review, the stadium will cost an estimated $3.785 billion, although this figure is yet to be publicly confirmed. Designer Michael Rayner stated that the chosen outcome was similar to a proposal that he mentioned during a lecture in 2019. Rayner noted that a cluster of major venues, which would be "as great a hallmark of Brisbane as Melbourne Park is to Melbourne." Rayner in his proposal thought that the land required for the stadium, Brisbane Live and the pool in the park would less than a third of Victoria Park, leaving some 30 hectares or so for the public, about twice the area of Sydney’s
Hyde Park. But since Brisbane Live will be constructed somewhere else Rayner thought that the stadium and pool would only take up around 20% of the 64-hectare park. The 100-day review noted that 68% (47.02 hectares) of the total area of the park would be retained as green space, with the stadium itself taking up less than 10% of the area. On 15 October 2025,
geotechnical investigation began on Victoria Park. The GIICA also affirmed that it was working closely with Brisbane City Council to plan appropriate drilling locations, and consulted local aboriginal parties on undertaking duty of care obligations during the process. In December 2025,
The Courier-Mail reported that four architects had been shortlisted to design the stadium, those being
Populous,
Herzog & de Meuron/
Architectus,
Gerkan, Marg and Partners/
Blight Rayner Architecture, and
Warren and Mahoney. On 5 January 2026, it was announced that the Japanese–Australian design consortium involving
Cox Architecture,
Hassell and Azusa Sekkei had been selected to be the architects for the stadium. Cox and Hassell were previously architects for
Perth Stadium, and have been involved in redevelopments of the
Adelaide Oval and the
Melbourne Cricket Ground. Azusa Sekkei previously constructed the
Japan National Stadium, which was built for the
2020 Summer Olympics and
Paralympics. On 24 March 2026, it was announced that early works was to occur once the land the stadium will be built on is transferred to the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority (GIICA) on 1 June. The Queensland Government also confirmed the stadium will be located in a "central position" near Gilchrist Avenue, within proximity to existing transport infrastructure. == Opposition ==