The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) is considered among the greatest sporting arenas in the world, with a reputation as a leading multi-purpose stadium.
Within close proximity to the Melbourne CBD, the ground was built in 1853 when the then 15-year-old Melbourne Cricket Club, which manages the ground on behalf of the State Government of Victoria, was forced to move from its former site because the route of Australia’s first steam train was to pass through the oval.
Since then the MCG has established a marvellous history that compares favourably with any other in the world, hosting plenty of international cricket, Australian Rules football, the 1956 Olympic Games and the Commonwealth Games in 2006.
Other major sporting spectacles that have been held at the MCG include Olympic soccer, Australian World Cup soccer qualifiers, rugby league home and away matches, State-of-Origin and international rugby union clashes.
Apart from its sporting events, the MCG has witnessed many blockbuster music concerts, Billy Graham’s 1959 crusade, and Pope John Paul II held a mass at the ground during his visit to Melbourne in 1986.
While more than three million people visit the ground annually, the highest official attendance at the MCG was 121,696 for the VFL/AFL Grand Final decider between Carlton and Collingwood in 1970. The MCG also holds the world record for the most people to ever attend a baseball match during the 1956 Olympic Games.
The MCG underwent major redevelopment of the northern side of the stadium (including the Ponsford, Members and Northern stands) in 2002 and, since the redevelopment has been completed, now boasts a total capacity of 100,000 people.
The MCG provides its visitors with world-class facilities, and has a well-known heritage collection that includes some of the most priceless memorabilia in Australian sporting history. The MCG’s vast collection of sporting and cultural artefacts is housed in the National Sports Museum.
