SYDNEY SHOWGROUND: GROUND & SPECTATOR GUIDE

Built: 1998

The Sydney Showground – aka the Giants Stadium, and previously Spotless Stadium and Skoda Stadium – is located in Sydney Olympic Park.

It will host five group fixtures at the 2020 Women’s T20 World Cup, including the opening match, Australia v India on February 21, and England v West Indies on March 1. It holds 22,000 fans for cricket matches.

HISTORY

The venue opened in 1998, and hosted the baseball at the 2000 Olympic Games, USA beating Cuba in the final.

It is the home of Big Bash side Sydney Thunder. They played two matches there in 2014/15, and liked it so much that they signed a 10-year agreement to play all their games there until 2024/25.

It is also the venue of Aussie rules side Sydney Giants, while soccer’s Western Sydney Wanderers called it home in 2016/17 when their stadium was being rebuilt. It also stages the Grand Parade of the Royal Easter Show, an agricultural extravaganza that attracts about 900,000 visitors a year.

Pop-up Christmas carnivals and concerts are also a feature. There are plans in place to increase capacity from 30,000–35,000.

Shane Watson of Sydney Thunder is bowled by Ben Laughlin of Adelaide Strikers during the Big Bash match at Sydney Showground on December 28, 2015

FAMOUS MOMENT

Sydney Thunder’s seven-wicket win over Adelaide strikers in 2015/16. Jacques Kallis took them over the line in front of a then-record 21,500 crowd, and they went on to be Big Bash champions that year.

HOW TO GET THERE

Address: Sydney Showground Locked Bag 4317 Sydney Olympic Park NSW 2127

Train: Run every day of the week, every 10 minutes between Lidcombe and Olympic Park Station, on the stadium’s doorstep, between 7am–11pm. A limited service also operates direct from Sydney Central to Olympic Park Station and designated trains can be arranged for large events. During major events train services are increased to cope with the demand.

Parking: The venue’s website boasts of 10,000-berth parking nearby.

Bus: Sydney Buses operate direct bus services to Sydney Olympic Park from a number of locations including Lidcombe, Strathfield and Parramatta.

To plan your trip and get the latest travel information, click here.

Ferry: Sydney Ferries run a daily service between Circular Quay and Parramatta stopping at Sydney Olympic Park Ferry Wharf. To travel to Sydney Showground, visitors must also catch a connecting bus.

To plan your trip and get the latest travel information, click here.