New Capital Football chief executive Ivan Slavich renews calls for a Civic stadium

After bubbling away for years, the stadium issue has come to a head in recent months. The ACT Brumbies and Canberra Raiders have been particularly vocal about Chief Minister Andrew Barr's recent change of stance on a city stadium.

Slavich is the latest senior sporting official to add his voice to the debate over the location and makeup of the new venue.

Barr reiterated in recent weeks a Civic stadium remains off the table, despite the wishes of the region's professional sports teams.

The Chief Minister did backtrack slightly, however, when he put a ground at EPIC back on the agenda alongside his preferred Bruce option.

Construction of a new stadium remains on the backburner for a number of years, with Barr labelling the venue a "dead space" when discussing the timeline for the project in August.

They're comments that add weight to Slavich's desire for soccer to be viewed as an equal tenant in any new stadium, the official confident his sport can provide considerable content throughout the summer months.

"When they first started talking about a city stadium, there was discussion around the fact it needs to be a stadium that encompasses union, league and football for it to work financially," Slavich said. "Having football in that facility is absolutely critical.

"A stadium would bring in so much money if you have it in the city. Having a football game in the city with people going to restaurants and pubs afterwards would be magic. Any city that has a stadium near the city, it's just so vibrant. It's great for the lifeblood of the community."

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Slavich's comments come after he recently reignited hopes Canberra will one day have an A-League Men's side.

Key to a future bid will be adequate facilities within the city and a new stadium will dispel any concerns from Football Australia powerbrokers.

The likely model moving forward would see the men's A-League team play at the new venue permanently while the women's side will split their matches between the proposed Home of Football in Throsby and the city stadium.

Slavich points to history to prove the appetite for top of the line matches in Canberra and said it's vital the city has the facilities to attract the Socceroos, Matildas and an A-League Men's side.

"When I was leading the A-League bid 10 years ago we had a Socceroos game come to Canberra," he said. "That game set the record for biggest football crowd in Canberra, we had over 20,000 people go to that game.

"That game shows there is capacity for big crowds if the right stadium is built in the city."

While he is determined to ensure Capital Football have a voice in discussions regarding a new stadium, Slavich is also focused on the commencement another major infrastructure project.

The incoming chief executive has been tasked by the board to advance the long-delayed Home of Football.

It's a venue that has been in the works for years and once completed will feature state-of-the-art fields and training facilities for soccer players of all ages.

Capital Football was snubbed in the recent federal budget, the organisation desperate to fill a $15 million funding shortfall as they look to turn their dream into a reality.

"It's still early days for me, I haven't seen the plans yet," Slavich said. "I'll be looking at all the plans and ensuring it is adequate and fit for purpose. There's a commitment from Capital Football to contribute towards the facility.

"A home of football is essential for Canberra. It was a big vision of former president Mark O'Neill. I did an infrastructure review back then and part of that review was looking at the Home of Football. It's essential we have one, football is the biggest sport in Canberra."

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