Sydney’s newest stadium opens in Parramatta

Thousands of Western Sydney sports fans had their first look at the new Bankwest Stadium in Parramatta today, which was officially opened by Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Minister for Sport John Sidoti.

The huge crowd flocked to the new stadium – which is on time and under the $360 million budget – to get a behind the scenes tour of Sydney’s newest venue.

“This is a great day for sports fans from across Western Sydney. Bankwest Stadium is a state-of-the-art venue. Delivering Bankwest Stadium means Western Sydney will now be a focal point for international sport,” Ms Berejiklian said.

Mr Sidoti said the 30,000 seat Bankwest Stadium has been designed with the fan experience in mind and the result was truly amazing.

“The fan experience will be second-to-none – they will be so close to the action they will almost feel the crunch of the tackles on the field,” Mr Sidoti said.

“We have already locked in more than 30 sports and entertainment events for Bankwest Stadium this year with more to be announced soon.”

With the steepest stands in the country, it has been designed to amplify crowd noise, with 360-degree LED screens to create a wall of sound and colour.

The first sporting event at Bankwest Stadium will be the Round 6 NRL clash between the Parramatta Eels and Wests Tigers on Easter Monday, 22 April.

The NSW Waratahs will play the first of three Super Rugby games at Bankwest Stadium against the Sharks on Saturday 27 April. Wests Tigers will play four home games at the venue, with their first against the Raiders on Friday 7 June.

The Western Sydney Wanderers will play their first game against English club Leeds United on Saturday 20 July. The Bankwest Stadium precinct will also feature children’s play equipment, parkland and new spaces that can be used for a variety of community events including market days and community movies.

/Public Release. View in full here.