Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as The 'G, is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadium in the Southern Hemisphere, the 11th largest globally, and the second-largest cricket ground by capacity, after the Narendra Modi Stadium. The MCG is within walking distance of the city centre and is served by Richmond and Jolimont railway stations, as well as the route 70, route 75, and route 48 trams. It is adjacent to Melbourne Park and is part of the Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Precinct.
MCG, The 'G | |
Panorama of the MCG before the 2017 AFL Grand Final | |
| Address | Melbourne Australia |
|---|---|
| Location | Yarra Park |
| Coordinates | 37°49′12″S 144°59′0″E |
| Operator | Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) |
| Executive suites | 109 |
| Capacity | 100,024 |
| Record attendance |
|
| Field size | 171 metres x 146 metres |
| Surface | Grass |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1853 |
| Renovated | 1992 (Southern Stand redevelopment) 2006 (Northern Stand redevelopment) 2032 (Proposed Shane Warne Stand redevelopment) |
| Tenants | |
|
Melbourne Football Club (1858–present)
Australian cricket team (1877–present) Melbourne Storm (2000)
Australia women's national football team (selected matches) Melbourne Victory (international friendly matches) | |
| Ground information | |
| End names | |
| West: City End (AFL); North: Members End (Cricket) South: Shane Warne Stand End (Cricket); East: Punt Road End (AFL) | |
| International information | |
| First Test | 15–19 March 1877: Australia v England |
| Last Test | 26–29 December 2023: Australia v Pakistan |
| First ODI | 5 January 1971: Australia v England |
| Last ODI | 2 February 2024: Australia v West Indies |
| First T20I | 1 February 2008: Australia v India |
| Last T20I | 13 November 2022: England v Pakistan |
| First women's Test | 18–20 January 1935: Australia v England |
| Last women's Test | 28–31 January 1949: Australia v England |
| First WODI | 18 December 1988: Australia v England |
| Last WODI | 23 January 2014: Australia v England |
| First WT20I | 1 February 2008: Australia v England |
| Last WT20I | 8 March 2020: Australia v India |
| As of 2 February 2024 Source: Cricinfo | |
| Type | Historic |
| Criteria | a, g, h |
| Designated | 26 December 2005 |
| Reference no. | 105885 |
| Official name | Melbourne Cricket Ground |
| Type | State Registered Place |
| Criteria | a, b, c, e, f, g |
| Designated | 19 April 2001 |
| Reference no. | H1928 |
| Heritage Overlay number | HO890 |
Since it was built in 1853, the MCG has undergone numerous renovations. It served as the centrepiece stadium of the 1956 Summer Olympics, the 2006 Commonwealth Games and two Cricket World Cups: 1992 and 2015. Noted for its role in the development of international cricket, the MCG hosted both the first Test match and the first One Day International, played between Australia and England in 1877 and 1971, respectively. It has also maintained strong ties with Australian rules football since its codification in 1859, and has become the principal venue for Australian Football League (AFL) matches, including the AFL Grand Final, the world's highest attended league championship event. It hosted the Final for the 2022 T20 World Cup.
Home to the Australian Sports Museum, the MCG has hosted other major sporting events, including international rules football matches between Australia and Ireland, international rugby union matches, State of Origin (rugby league) games, and FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Concerts and other cultural events are also held at the venue with the record attendance standing at 143,750 for a Billy Graham evangelistic crusade in 1959. Grandstand redevelopments and occupational health and safety legislation have limited the maximum seating capacity to approximately 95,000 with an additional 5,000 standing room capacity, bringing the total capacity to 100,024.
The MCG is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register and was included on the Australian National Heritage List in 2005. In 2003, journalist Greg Baum called it "a shrine, a citadel, a landmark, a totem" that "symbolises Melbourne to the world".