SYD NE Y SWANS H Q AND C O MMUNIT Y CENTRE
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n October 2018, the Sydney Swans announced that it had secured a long-term lease of one of Sydney’s most iconic buildings; the Royal Hall of Industries (RHI). Located in Driver Avenue, just a few hundred metres from the SCG, the RHI would become New South Wales’ premier sports training and administration facility and a vibrant community hub. In April 2020 the project was put on hold, reflecting the considerable uncertainty relating to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the challenges presented to the RHI development by a global pandemic have been no match to the determination and vision of the many people committed to transforming the RHI into
what will be an iconic sporting and community hub of global scale. Channelling the never say die Bloods spirit, and with thanks to the significant support of the New South Wales Government and the Sydney Swans Foundation, the Club are delighted to reignite this exciting project. It is the most significant project undertaken by the Swans since the move to Sydney in 1982 and provides a long-term home for the club’s men’s, women’s and academy programs, all within a drop punt of the SCG at the Moore Park precinct. With completion planned for late 2022 the RHI will be transformed into a state- ofthe-art high-performance sport and community facility
34 S Y D N E Y S W A N S 2021 SEASON REVIEW
for our players, coaches and staff, as well as the QBE Sydney Swans Youth Girls and Youth Boys Academies. With the successful licence of a Sydney Swans AFL team for season 2022/23, the new facility will be a hub for our incoming AFLW team. Equal access and equal importance. The inaugural Sydney Swans AFLW team will train alongside the AFL team, and hundreds of aspiring young girls and boys engaged in the QBE Academy programs. One club under one roof. The club’s new headquarters will be much more than a training facility. It will be a meeting place that will allow the club to interact and engage with our people and communities on a daily basis.
