The facility opened in 1975, providing a synthetic running track for athletics competitions that was unaffected by wet weather, the first in Queensland. It was officially named
Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Sports Centre by the Queen in 1977 to mark her
Silver Jubilee. It was constructed in close proximity to both the
Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Hospital and
Griffith University campus, which provided athlete accommodation. Originally, the section of the stadium covered by roofing was intended to be the only permanent seating facility. The remainder of the stadium seating was built as "temporary" seating and was intended to be removed after the Commonwealth Games had finished. Public opinion resulted in the unroofed temporary seating being retained as permanent. The stadium was named
ANZ Stadium from 1993 to 2003 when it was the home of the
Brisbane Broncos rugby league football team. The stadium currently has a capacity of 48,500 people, although the record crowd is 58,912, set during the
1997 Super League Grand Final which saw the Broncos defeat the
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 26–8. The capacity can be increased to 60,000 with the use of extra temporary seating in front of the Eastern and Western grandstands. These were removed when the running track was relaid for the 2001
Goodwill Games. In 1999, ANZ Stadium hosted eventual champions Australia in their Davis Cup Semi-Final win over Russia 4–1. Temporary grass courts were erected up one end of the field and temporary stands on 3 sides. The crowd capacity for this event was 10, 600. 1999 Australian Open Champion and Russian Davis Cup player
Yevgeny Kafelnikov described the court "like playing on a potato field" and "that court is just not acceptable for this kind of event." In 2002, ownership transferred to the Queensland Government Major Sports Facilities Authority and the venue was given its present name. While the athletics facilities are well utilised, the stands at the stadium have largely stood empty and unused since the Broncos returned to a redeveloped
Lang Park in 2003. show being played at the QSAC on 25 November 2009 The stadium has hosted a number of events, including: • 11 editions of the
Australian Championships in Athletics, the most of any existing venue • 1982 –
1982 Commonwealth Games • 1985 –
Bruce Springsteen & The
E Street Band – 31 March 1985 • 1986 –
Dire Straits, Brothers-in-Arms tour – 27 March 1986 • 1986 –
World Junior Squash Championships • 1986 -
Pope John Paul II, Mass - 25 November 1986 • 1993 –
U2 with
Big Audio Dynamite II and
Kim Salmon and the Surrealists – 20 November 1993 • 1993 –
Madonna – 24 November 1993 • 1994 –
1994 Rugby League World Club Challenge • 1995 –
The Rolling Stones – 12 April 1995 • 1995 –
The Eagles – 24 November 1995 • 1996 –
Michael Jackson HIStory World Tour, 40,000 people – 19 November 1996 • 1997 –
1997 Super League Grand Final • 1998 –
U2 with
Sidewinder – 25 February 1998 • 1999 –
1999 Davis Cup Semi-Final tie vs. Russia • 2001 –
Goodwill Games • 2001/2002 –
State of Origin series games • 2002 – An assignment on
the third season of The Mole, filmed in early 2002, where the contestants had to draw an animal using the painting machines normally used to mark the playing fields. • 2006 –
U2 with
Kanye West – 7 November 2006 • 2009 –
Pearl Jam with
Relentless7 – 25 November 2009 • 2010 –
AC/DC with
Wolfmother – 25 and 27 February 2010 • 2010–2011 – This venue served as an evacuation centre for residents affected by the
2010–2011 Queensland floods • 2014 –
Matildas vs
Brazil – 6 and 9 April 2014 • 2014 –
2014 FFA Cup round of 16 match between
Olympic FC and
Central Coast Mariners – 16 September 2014 • 2015 –
AC/DC with
The Hives – 12 and 14 November 2015 • 2017 –
Guns N' Roses with
Rose Tattoo – 7 February 2017 • 2018 –
International friendly football match between
South Korea and
Uzbekistan – 20 November 2018 • 2019 –
Eminem with
Hilltop Hoods – 20 February 2019 The stadium is still actively used by athletes at a local, State and National level. Many local clubs such as
Thompson Estate and Eastern Suburbs Athletics use it regularly for training. The stadium has also permitted students of the neighbouring
Griffith University (Nathan campus) to use its expansive carpark, free of charge. This is due to the relatively low availability of parking as well as the cost of parking on the campus (there is no free parking). Students who don't mind the ten-minute walk from the stadium take advantage of the large carpark. In April 2023, a
Right to Information application by
Brisbane Times revealed plans for QSAC to be modified to become a temporary home for the
Brisbane Lions AFL club while their home stadium,
the Gabba, is demolished and rebuilt for the
2032 Summer Olympics. ==Notable Rugby League Games==