Queensland reveals Victoria Park Olympic stadium designs amid ongoing opposition

Joseph Guenzler
Joseph Guenzler Published January 5, 2026 at 9.30am (AWST)

The Queensland government has released concept designs for the proposed Victoria Park Barrambin stadium as opposition intensifies around concerns over cultural heritage, environmental damage and the timing of planned works.

Barrambin, traditionally known as Wallin, is a significant place for Turrbal and Yuggera people as a long-standing gathering, camping and ceremonial site.

The 63,000-seat centrepiece stadium planned for the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games has been designed by Australian architecture firms COX and Hassell, alongside Japan-based firm Azusa Sekkei.

Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie said the design teams were selected through a three-month procurement process and would deliver what he described as an "iconically Queensland" stadium.

"This is going to be the biggest stadium in Queensland," he told the Today program on Monday morning.

"The Gabba is nearing end of life, so we need a bigger stadium. We need a 63,000-seat stadium for our AFL and cricket fans."

Artist's impression of Brisbane Stadium at Victoria Park. (Image: Supplied)

In September, engineering firm Arup was announced as the lead consultant for the broader precinct master plan, covering Victoria Park and the nearby RNA Showgrounds.

Advocacy group Save Victoria Park said the release of stadium imagery did not change the underlying impacts of the proposal, with up to 66 per cent of the park expected to be affected by construction.

The group said it had been advised that the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority could move to begin excavation works within months, despite the project still lacking a final location and completed master plan.

Save Victoria Park spokesperson Rosemary O'Hagan said the newly released renders did not reflect what would be lost on the ground.

"This latest tranche of greenwashed computer imagery is not real," she said.

"What's real are the ancient trees, rolling hills, and native wildlife the government intends to obliterate for what could become one of history's most environmentally disastrous Olympic Games."

Ms O'Hagan said the group had been advised GIICA intended to send in excavators sooner rather than later, possibly within months, and before they were reasonably required.

"We would remind the Crisafulli government there are legal applications requesting permanent protection of the park, currently being evaluated under the federal Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act," she said.

"Why would they start bulldozing trees, prior to these critical legal issues being resolved?"

She questioned why site works would proceed before those processes were finalised.

Aunty Deb Sandy says no stadium should be built on Barrambin, a sacred site that remains home to her people. (Image: Joseph Guenzler)

Opposition has also focused on the site's cultural significance to Indigenous people.

Yuggera woman Aunty Deb Sandy has previously described the area as sacred Country that should not be disturbed.

"That green space should be left as green space, as it was in the beginning - for the people of Brisbane," she said.

"No stadium should be built there... it's a no-brainer. No deal. No stadium."

Aunty Deb said the site was a long-standing gathering place for Turrbal and Yuggera peoples.

"Aboriginal people used to camp there, it was home," she said.

"It was communal grounds too, for when visitors came from up the coast, out west - for ceremonies, for corroborees and travel ways."

She has also spoken publicly about the area's violent colonial history.

"There was a lot of killings and murders that went on there... One of the most famous ones - Kitty - she was pregnant and when she got clubbed over the head and shot, she died," she said.

Save Victoria Park will hold a "Creatives in the Park" protest event with Patches of Hope on Saturday 31 January, as community opposition to the stadium plans continues.

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