Latest news with #WillRussell
Perth Now
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Perth Now
Socceroos ticket sales strong ahead of Japan clash
Optus Stadium is on track to be more than two-thirds full for the Socceroos' vital, blockbuster World Cup qualifiying clash against Japan. However, the 60,000-seat stadium's seldom-used drop-in seats for rectangular sports will not be employed for the match, which would see the Socceroos clinch a sixth-consecutive FIFA World Cup with a win. With less than three weeks to go before the match, preparations are in full swing for the Australian side, with a 10-day training camp set to kick off early next week ahead of their final two qualifying matches. Ahead of the June 5 game, The West Australian understands ticket sales are performing strongly, with expectations the crowd will exceed 40,000. Optus Stadium chief executive Mike McKenna confirmed the Socceroos game would not use the drop-in seats, and the decision was a Football Australia one rather than down to VenuesLive, who operate the stadium. 'The Optus Stadium drop-in seats were used for the NRL Double Header in 2018, as a trial and for the Bledisloe Cup match on 10 August 2019,' he said. 'The decision to use the drop in seats is at the discretion of the hirer.' A general view as the teams line up during the 2019 Rugby Championship Test Match between the Australian Wallabies and the New Zealand All Blacks. Credit: Will Russell / Getty Images The Burswood stadium has hosted a slew of rectangular sports games over the past few years, including high-profile European football sides' friendlies, a sold-out Matildas game, rugby league games and rugby union Test matches. Two weeks after the Socceroos match, it will host game two of this year's State of Origin and the British and Irish Lions' meeting with Western Force in the same week. When the stadium was built, its ability to accomodate rectangular sports with up to 5000 drop-in seats on all four sides of the pitch was touted — but the extra seats have not been used for six years. The 2019 Bledislode Cup game was Optus Stadium's highest-attended game ever, drawing in 61,241 fans to watch the Wallabies beat New Zealand 47-26. The additional, drop-in seats bring the front row of seats closer to the action, but do not make the ground appear rectangular. Optus Stadium's rectangular sports fact sheet boast the drop-in seats offer unobstructed, quality views of the field of play, regardless of seating configuration or the sporting event and a 12-hour turnaround to install and/or remove the seats.
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Yahoo
London Eye, pioneering observation wheel, turns 25
By Francesca Halliwell and Will Russell LONDON (Reuters) - Tourists wanting a bird's eye view of Big Ben, St Paul's Cathedral and Buckingham Palace have put the London Eye in the ranks of the city's most visited attractions since it was opened 25 years ago on Sunday. The observation wheel, which offers visitors a 30-minute ride in a glass pod, was supposed to stand for five years before being dismantled, but its popularity led to it being made a permanent fixture on the River Thames last year. On a clear day, tourists riding the wheel can spot Windsor Castle, the royal family's 900 year-old home 40 kilometers (24.85 miles) away, while for Britons it has become synonymous with the city's fireworks on New Year's Eve. The wheel was the idea of husband and wife architects David Marks and Julia Barfield to celebrate the millennium. Its shape symbolises the cycle of life. "A circle has no beginning and no end. It is symbolic of the passing of time," Barfield told Reuters, adding that when it opened, it was one of the few options for a view of London from a height. Since it started operating, the city's skyline has been transformed by new skyscrapers that can be viewed from the wheel. All named after their shapes, The Gherkin opened in 2004, the Shard, London's tallest building, followed in 2013 and the Cheesegrater in 2014. About 3.5 million people pay from 29 pounds ($37.17) per ticket to ride the London Eye each year. Its popularity has inspired dozens of copycat wheels in cities around the world, but at 135 metres (442.91 ft) tall, the London Eye remains the world's largest cantilevered observation wheel. The architects' plan was for the attraction to revitalise a part of London's South Bank, and 1% of the attraction's annual revenues are paid to help maintain the public area around. ($1 = 0.7802 pounds)
