Rabbitohs move to Allianz Stadium blocked

Article posted by Coliseum, June 27^th, 2025

Image: Allianz Stadium, Shkuru Afshar, CC BY-SA 4.0

National Rugby League’s (NRL) South Sydney Rabbitohs’ hopes of moving their home games to the Allianz Stadium in Sydney have been dashed by the New South Wales Government.

Financial Review said the Rabbitohs play nine matches per season at Accor Stadium at Sydney Olympic Park under a contract that runs until the end of the decade.

The club had been pushing to relocate to the new stadium at Moore Park in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, saying their current home lacks atmosphere and affects its ability to make money.

But in a letter sent to Rabbitohs chief executive officer Blake Solly, New South Wales minister for sport Steve Kamper outlined the government’s decision to deny the NRL club’s bid to make Allianz Stadium its full-time base.

He has told the Rabbitohs to honour an existing contract requiring them to play the majority of their games at Accor Stadium through 2030.

Solly said, “Minister Kamper has written to us rejecting our request. We’ll review the letter and his reasons, then consider a response and our further options. We remain committed to discussing the issue with the government and Venues NSW. This is by no means the end of the process.”

The South Sydney District Rugby League Football Club, also known as the South Sydney Rabbitohs, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Maroubra that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL).

Under their initial proposal, Souths had aimed to play nine games per season at the $828 million Moore Park venue, two at Accor Stadium, and one outside of Sydney.

The government countered by offering only two or three matches per year at Allianz, keeping the majority at Accor.

Souths have been based at Accor since 2006 but have long expressed a desire to return closer to their spiritual home of Redfern.

The Rabittohs said, “We strongly believe a move to Allianz Stadium will allow us to provide Members, fans and sponsors with an enhanced game-day experience, premium facilities, improved transport access, and central proximity for our supporter base, returning to our Heartland in South Sydney.”

The Rabbitohs were previously based in the Moore Park precinct between 1908 and 1947 and again from 1988 until their move out west.

Club officials argue the original agreement with the government was made under the assumption that Accor would receive significant renovations – upgrades that never happened.

Solly added, “We’ve asked the government for further details on the forecast financial losses if we move to Allianz. We are happy to keep discussing with the government a reasonable position and hopefully we get those details soon. We were originally promised those details in 2022.”

The state government referred to financial constraints, including existing commercial and sponsorship arrangements, as the primary reason for denying the move.

Kamper’s office estimates the shift could cost taxpayers between A$4.5 million and A$14 million annually.

The decision leaves the Rabbitohs sharing Allianz Stadium with arch-rivals the Sydney Roosters for only a limited number of matches.

Roosters chairman Nick Politis has remained adamant that the modernised stadium should remain exclusive to the Eastern Suburbs club, which currently shares the venue with Sydney FC and the NSW Waratahs.

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