THE SYDNEY SWANS have signed a 30-year deal to play all home games at the SCG, ending their association with ANZ Stadium.

 

From 2017, the Swans will play all home games at the Moore Park venue, which is close to Sydney's CBD.

 

The contract also provides for Swans' finals to be scheduled at the SCG, although the ultimate scheduling decision rests with the AFL.

 

The club has two years to run on its contract with ANZ Stadium, which includes three games already scheduled there in 2015.  

 

A League spokesman told AFL.com.au no games would be moved next season.

 

The agreement is expected to be a popular one, with the surface and location of the Sydney Olympics venue a cause of significant debate in recent years.

  

“We have received a lot of feedback on the current stadium arrangements, and it was clear our members and fans located in Sydney, broader New South Wales and in fact Australia, wanted the SCG to be our one and only home," Swans chairman Andrew Pridham said on the club's website. 

“For this to happen it was important that any new agreement met a range of requirements, most notably financial, scheduling and match day experience," he said.  

“The SCG was our home when we first arrived in Sydney, we train every day at the ground and there is no doubt it remains the spiritual home for our club in Sydney.

Swans chief executive Andrew Ireland admitted the 46,000-seat SCG will likely be filled to capacity more often, increasing the importance of membership.

“We had a number of sell-out matches in 2014, and with a fixture full of big matches in 2015 we are likely to see the same," Ireland said.  

 

"At the moment, fewer than 5000 reserved seat memberships remain for next year.

“We understand that under this new agreement, there will be more sold-out games than ever before, which means the need to secure seats as a member will be more important than ever before,” Ireland said.

 

Ireland also hinted at the possibility of an upgrade to the Swans training base at the venue.

 

“Having a single home ground for our Club is important to us and gives us the opportunity to better work with the SCG on delivering the best possible fan experience," Ireland said. 

 

"In addition, the long term nature of the agreement best enables us to plan for the future growth in the club’s requirements for training and administration facilities."