Caroline Harvie-Teare: Otautahi Venues CEO on the rugby league fixtures coming to Christchurch

Christchurch has been confirmed as a host city for the Rugby League World Cup at the end of next year.

The tournament was originally set to take place in Australia and Papua New Guinea, but the new Te Kaha stadium is set to host some high-profile double headers.

Otautahi Venues CEO Caroline Harvie-Teare joined Piney to discuss.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sports Talk podcast with Dancy Wildergrave
from News Talk ZEDB.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Christ Church has been confirmed as a host city for
the Rugby League World Cup next October November. The tournament
was originally set down for just Australia and Papua New Guinea,
but Tekaha Stadium, which opens in April, we'll host the
Kiwis and Kiwi Ferns doubleheader on Sunday October. The twenty
fifth Chief executive of Venues Autel Tahi is Caroline Harvey Tia,

(00:34):
who joins us this is great news for the league
fans of christ Church. Caroline, how did it all come about?

Speaker 3 (00:39):
Well, look, I guess NRL saw the saw this wonderful
new stadium and christ Church here and decided they might
branch out. Look, we've had a long standing conversation with
rail about one new Gilain Stadium and christ Church and
it was a competitive process and we managed to persuade

(01:02):
them that it was time to bring a little bit
of that Rugby league con for the World Cup here
into christ Church. So, as I say, it was a
competitive process and chrosh Church came out on top.

Speaker 2 (01:13):
How big do you think the fact that this is
a bright, shining new stadium. Was in that persuasion process.

Speaker 4 (01:20):
Oh look, it absolutely makes a difference.

Speaker 3 (01:22):
You know, we've got and we'll have the best stadium
in the country.

Speaker 4 (01:26):
The roof makes a difference.

Speaker 3 (01:27):
All of those things, as well as having the best
city to host this type of event. But look, at
the end of the day, we we have a great
relationship with NRAL and christ Church has a very strong
rugby league fanbase here, so all of those things ed up.
But of course having a brand new stadium makes a

(01:48):
massive difference. But I think this is just the start
of things to come.

Speaker 2 (01:51):
Well, you've already got the Warriors coming of course in
June to play the Cowboys. That's locked in our rugby
league events a particular target for you.

Speaker 4 (01:59):
Yeah, definitely.

Speaker 3 (02:00):
We want to see douvers content in the stadium, and
that's not just traversing sport but obviously entertain So we
want to see rugby, we want to see rugby league,
we want to see a league football, we'd love to
see an exhibition Premier league, you know, and even start
to look at things like boxing, tennis, you know, making
it taking advantage of the multi youse functionality of that venue.
So diversity of content and the fact that the stadium

(02:23):
is purpose built as a multi use facility.

Speaker 4 (02:26):
We want to absolutely leverage that for the city.

Speaker 2 (02:28):
The first event at Tika Super Rugby's Super Round of
course over Amzac weekend, starting with Crusaders waratas Friday, April
twenty four. It's November twenty four today, so what's that
five months exactly? Are you going to be ready?

Speaker 4 (02:41):
We're going to be ready.

Speaker 3 (02:42):
Yeah. Yeah, we've been planning for this for four years.
The city's been waiting fifteen so we aren't too far away.
I think it's just under one hundred and fifty days now. Look,
it's ambitious, you know. We official handovers the twentieth of
April twenty twenty six, and that first game is on
the twenty fourth, so we're hoping to see seventy five

(03:03):
thousand people there across three days.

Speaker 4 (03:06):
But we'll well and truly be ready. Absolutely.

Speaker 2 (03:09):
What is still to be done? If you took me
for a tour through there today, what is it almost
finished as a cosmetic now? What is still to be done?

Speaker 3 (03:18):
Look, the big thing still to be done is the
toof So the turf installation is the most material thing
still to go. But if you walk around there now
you can pretty much imagine yourself watching and enjoying all
of the food and beverage hospitality that will be in
their premium hospitality looks almost complete, all of the concourse

(03:42):
and the retail food and beverage outlets, all the player facilities. Yeah,
look it looks absolutely beautiful and now that that roof
is finished, it feels amazing.

Speaker 2 (03:51):
Now presumably there'll be an All Blacks test there next
year as well. Do you know which one you're going
to get?

Speaker 4 (03:58):
Well?

Speaker 3 (03:59):
Yes, look those are those allocations will be announced for
twenty six and twenty seven in the next week while.
But look, we haven't seen All Black rugby here regularly
for a long time. I think we've had two matches
in the last twelve It'll be longer fourteen to fifteen years.
So look, we can't wait for our community to start

(04:19):
seeing our national team here a little bit more often.
So we're looking forward to those announcements that will be
coming up.

Speaker 2 (04:25):
Brilliant stuff. Do you have like a calendar on your
wall or something that you take off it day by day?
Do you have a sort of a countdown of some
sort that you I know, you know it in your head,
but do you do you have something like that?

Speaker 4 (04:37):
Oh, we do.

Speaker 1 (04:38):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (04:38):
We've been counting down the days for gosh, probably about
three years. And it's funny because we've been invested and
so heavily involved in design and obviously through commercial planning
and then commercial transactions have been happening for the last
two years, you know, operational readiness. We're in that sort

(04:59):
of intensive program now. But it's funny like now that
we're right at the point of end, it almost feels
like the runways very very quickly got very very short.
But look, we're very very much ready and I think
emotionally ready and operationally ready.

Speaker 4 (05:14):
So but yeah, the countdown is real, that's for sure.

Speaker 2 (05:18):
Yeah. Well I know the good folk of christ it's
the sports fans there, the diet and the wall sports fans.
We'll be counting down the days as well. So super
Rugby super around ANZAC weekend and this announcement about Rugby
League World Cup action for the Keys and the Kiwi
Ferns just another date to put a circle around Caroline.
Always great to catch up. Thank you for taking the time,
No worries at all.

Speaker 3 (05:38):
We can't wait to heave you down here and celebrate
with us.

Speaker 2 (05:40):
Well, I will certainly be coming for Super Round, don't
you worry about that, Caroline. Tickets already booked. Thanks indeed,
Caroline Harvey Tier, chief executive at Venues Audulte.

Speaker 1 (05:50):
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