The City of Ballarat’s partnership with the Western Bulldogs continues to grow even stronger after the signing of a three-year partnership extension to continue hosting AFL and AFLW matches in the city.
In conjunction with the State Government, the new partnership will see two AFL home and away games and one AFLW match played at Mars Stadium each season until the end of 2027, with potential for further pre-season matches.
In 2025, this will see the Bulldogs host Port Adelaide and Adelaide in Ballarat.
The agreement will also see the Western Bulldogs continue to deliver a highly valuable range of community-based programs, such as Bulldogs Read, the Youth Leadership program, the Next Generation Academy and the Sons and Daughters of the West health programs.
The partnership supports the City of Ballarat’s Events Strategy and with AFLW part of the agreement, aligns closely with the Active Women and Girls Strategy.
The association between Ballarat and the Western Bulldogs extends back to 2017, the year after the Bulldogs broke a 62-year premiership drought to win their second VFL/AFL premiership.
The City of Ballarat will contribute $1.425 million in total to the three-year partnership.
City of Ballarat Central Ward Councillor, Samantha McIntosh said the Western Bulldogs commitment to Ballarat extended beyond just their on field heroics.
“This collaboration has been invaluable to Ballarat, both on and off the field,” she said.
“The partnership extension means that for the next three years we will continue to host two AFL home-and-away matches and one AFLW game at Mars Stadium, but just as importantly beyond match days, the Bulldogs will continue to deliver exceptional programs that mean the world to the people of Ballarat.”
Western Bulldogs Chief Executive Officer, Ameet Bains said the club looked forward to continuing its partnership with Ballarat.
“Ballarat remains entrenched as our home away from home and we couldn’t be happier to confirm an extension of this partnership with the City of Ballarat and Visit Victoria,” he said.
“When we play at Mars Stadium the passion of the support we receive from our home crowd is evident and over the years it’s been wonderful to see the city becoming a little more red, white and blue every time we play.
“As a Club we have built an enduring connection to this region and will continue to do everything we can to engage the community each and every day of the year and well beyond our always eagerly anticipated home fixtures in Ballarat.”
Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events Steve Dimopoulos said the State Government was pleased to partner with the Western Bulldogs and City of Ballarat once again.
“Victorians live for sport and that passion is well and truly alive in the regions,” he said.
“We are bringing elite footy to Ballarat so people can experience it in their own backyard – backing local jobs, businesses and the community at the same time.”
