$50 Million In Funding Means Wests Tigers To Continue Playing In Leichhardt

NRL team West Tigers committed to a 15-year stadium strategy, after $110 million was granted to fund upgrades to their two home grounds of Leichhardt Oval and Campbelltown Sports Stadium.

With funding provided by Tigers new partners Inner West Council and Campbelltown City Council, the announcement will see the clubs NRL and NRWL fixtures played at both venues until 2041.

$50 million has been designated to both venues to upgrade the structure and integrity, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2028. With the completed upgrades, the club is expected to turn over an additional $2 million match day revenue each season.

The upgrades will result in match day turnovers exceeding $600,000, with the new upgrades allowing for up to 18,000 fans and 1,000 corporates to enter the venue at Leichhardt Oval and 22,000 fans with 1,200 corporates. 

The upgrades include significantly uploaded amenities for players, plans and to provide support for Campbelltown Sports Stadiums community run programs.

The works on Leichhardt Oval are expected to commence in early 2027, with Campbelltown Sports Stadium in 2028.

Tigers CEO Shane Richardson declared that the Campbelltown facilities were not substantial enough, threatening to abandon the venues if there was no agreement to upgrade the facilities. Richardson wavered the same threat last year to Leichhardt until federal and state governments delivered $50 million in funding.

“We were prepared to leave if there were no upgrades. It was never a case of abandoning one half of the merger, we were just going to abandon one of the grounds,” says Richardson.

Long term, Tigers will divide their home games between Leichhardt and Campbelltown, honouring the deal they made in return for the funding.

Richardson has been associated with these issues before, as his previous role in South Sydney’s Rabbitohs led him to success after he relocated the club to Olympic Park; in turn a deal that saved the club internally.

“This is great news for the club. We’ve always said we needed our grounds to be financially viable, otherwise it wasn’t worth playing at them,” says Richardson.

At Sunday’s game, Richardson was accompanied by Tigers chairman Barry O’Farrell, Inner West Council mayor Darcy Byrne, and Campbelltown’s mayor Darcy Lound when it was confirmed that Tigers will remain with their roots for the next ten years, with additional considerations for another five seasons.

Byrne said, “This secures the eighth wonder of the world as a home ground for the next generation of Wests Tigers fans. Laurie Nichols would be shedding a tear knowing that Leichhardt Oval has been saved as a rugby league venue for decades to come.”

City Hub reached out to Wests Tigers for comment, but did not receive a response by time of publication.