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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-05-12 Daily Xml
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SOCCER WORLD CUP

Mr HAMILTON-SMITH (Waite—Leader of the Opposition) (14:29): Does the Premier now accept that South Australia's only chance of being part of the bid for the 2018 or 2022 FIFA World Cup is to build a stadium in the city? Football Federation Australia's Mr Ben Buckley reportedly rejected, in meetings yesterday, AAMI Stadium and the Adelaide Oval as World Cup venues and asked the state government to build a 40,000 seat arena, suggesting two locations.

The Hon. M.D. RANN (Ramsay—Premier, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Social Inclusion, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Sustainability and Climate Change) (14:29): I have not met with Mr Ben Buckley in recent times, and I might reflect on that on another occasion. The key thing is that you have to win the World Cup. Let me just explain. I have been to FIFA headquarters in Switzerland, and I perhaps have a tad more knowledge of this issue of members opposite. The next World Cup will be in South Africa, in the Southern Hemisphere, and the following World Cup will be in South America, in the Southern Hemisphere. The suggestion is that the European power brokers are going to then allow a third World Cup in the Southern Hemisphere. Three in a row.

As I understand it, the particular World Cup that we are referring to, the bidders are likely to be Australia, China and London, and there has been various speculation that London was on a promise. Of course, there is also that old FIFA mantra that you have to actually bid for a World Cup in order to get the next one. I do not accept. I do not believe that someone of the standard of the President of FIFA would ever operate in such a way, given the millions of dollars required to secure a World Cup. So, Ben Buckley thinks there will be three in a row in the Southern Hemisphere and that Asia and also Europe are going to say, 'That's fine. Okay.'

What I will do is make a promise to this house that, upon the announcement of a World Cup win, there is a substantial amount of time available for the host nation or continent to then make sure that in those years ahead that there are stadia—and I use that word advisedly—available to cater for the World Cup games. We remember the United States of America and South Africa—so much so that they will have a series of stadia ready for the coming World Cup.

So, when and if we win the World Cup, whether it is in 2018 or whether it is 2022, I look forward to joining everyone at the World Cup games then. I am looking forward to being there. I am not sure what positions members opposite will hold at that stage because who can predict the future? None of us can. I am looking forward to going into that World Cup stadium, and I am looking forward to seeing World Cup games in Adelaide, because we will have facilities available. However, the first thing to do, rather than count your facilities before they hatch, is to actually go out there and understand FIFA politics. I am more than happy to advise the Football Federation of Australia, or anyone else, given that I was asked by other Labor leaders to look into this issue some time ago.

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. M.D. RANN: Yes; and it is true that, while members opposite were in government, they lost the Grand Prix.

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