Marvel Stadium - The Docklands Footy Paradise

You might recall seeing the Telstra Dome setting the stage for Nicholas Cage’s daring helicopter jump in the film “Ghost Rider” in 2007.

Or perhaps you were one of the screaming fans present during Robbie Williams Close Encounters Tour, which had a record attendance of over 66,000 people in 2006.

Whatever the occasion, the Telstra Dome serves as a multipurpose sports and entertainment stadium in the Docklands precinct of Melbourne, Australia.

Telstra Dome: The Name

Formerly known as Victoria Stadium and Colonial Stadium, the name changed to the Telstra Dome on October 1, 2002 when the telecommunications company Telstra acquired the rights from Colonial State Bank. The dome broke ground in 1996 and was opened for business in 2000, developed to replace Waverley Park by Docklands Stadium Consortium and then sold in 2006 to James Fielding Funds Management for AU$330 million.
The Dome is scheduled to be purchased in 2025 by the AFL, the Australian Football League. Find out more about Australian Rules Football.

Telstra Dome: Roof and Ground

Home to such AFL teams as the Western Bulldogs, St Kilda, Essendon, and Carlton, the stadium with its 38-meter retractable roof 120 ft. above the playing surface, opens east and west and only takes eight minutes to fully open or close over a varying capacity of between 12,000 and 74,000 fans.

There have been a number of criticism’s however as the quality and suitability of its playing surface, with its slipperiness, hardness and lack of grass coverage poses a definite threat to players raising concerns that hard surfaces increase the likelihood of player injury; particularly anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries (knee).

Attempts to grow grass year round in the stadium proves difficult as the amount of sunlight able to illuminate the field is limited by the stadium’s placement between the surrounding roads and Docklands’ body of water.

Telstra Dome: Recent Events

Many of the events hosted by the stadium include the more recent VFL and TAC Cup Grand Finals and the Rugby World Cup.
The Telstra Dome is currently part of the Australian bid to host the 2018 Football World Cup. In the summer months, the AFC Champions League and Melbourne Victory (soccer club) games in the A-league call the dome home, hosting the thousands in attendance.
From March to September it hosts many Australian rules football games.

Located in central business district of Melbourne, the Telstra Dome is the newest sports and entertainment venue in Australia, anything and everything you could possibly want is available.

Whether it is the high-tech sound and lighting, in-the-action seating, all the quality food and beverages you can consume, it is one of the most technologically advanced in the world.

The Telstra Dome has been an integral part in the sports’ and entertainment scene in Melbourne and it is sure to bring all the live drama fans can handle for years to come.

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