Optus Stadium is on track to be more than two-thirds full for the Socceroos’ vital, blockbuster World Cup qualifiying clash against Japan.
However, the 60,000-seat stadium’s seldom-used drop-in seats for rectangular sports will not be employed for the match, which would see the Socceroos clinch a sixth-consecutive FIFA World Cup with a win.
With less than three weeks to go before the match, preparations are in full swing for the Australian side, with a 10-day training camp set to kick off early next week ahead of their final two qualifying matches.
Ahead of the June 5 game, The West Australian understands ticket sales are performing strongly, with expectations the crowd will exceed 40,000.
Optus Stadium chief executive Mike McKenna confirmed the Socceroos game would not use the drop-in seats, and the decision was a Football Australia one rather than down to VenuesLive, who operate the stadium.
“The Optus Stadium drop-in seats were used for the NRL Double Header in 2018, as a trial and for the Bledisloe Cup match on 10 August 2019,” he said.
“The decision to use the drop in seats is at the discretion of the hirer.”
The Burswood stadium has hosted a slew of rectangular sports games over the past few years, including high-profile European football sides’ friendlies, a sold-out Matildas game, rugby league games and rugby union Test matches.
Two weeks after the Socceroos match, it will host game two of this year’s State of Origin and the British and Irish Lions’ meeting with Western Force in the same week.
When the stadium was built, its ability to accomodate rectangular sports with up to 5000 drop-in seats on all four sides of the pitch was touted — but the extra seats have not been used for six years.
The 2019 Bledislode Cup game was Optus Stadium’s highest-attended game ever, drawing in 61,241 fans to watch the Wallabies beat New Zealand 47-26.
The additional, drop-in seats bring the front row of seats closer to the action, but do not make the ground appear rectangular.
Optus Stadium’s rectangular sports fact sheet boast the drop-in seats offer unobstructed, quality views of the field of play, regardless of seating configuration or the sporting event and a 12-hour turnaround to install and/or remove the seats.
