Cricket Victoria is pleased to confirm it has received approval from the Minister for Planning to begin the construction of four light towers at the CitiPower Centre, ready for season 2026/27. The lights will enable Cricket Victoria to host evening matches broadcast in prime-time, generating greater attendance and television exposure opportunities, particularly for women’s cricket […]
Cricket Victoria is pleased to confirm it has received approval from the Minister for Planning to begin the construction of four light towers at the CitiPower Centre, ready for season 2026/27.
The lights will enable Cricket Victoria to host evening matches broadcast in prime-time, generating greater attendance and television exposure opportunities, particularly for women's cricket including the Victorian, Women's Big Bash League (WBBL) and Australian Women cricket teams. Construction will commence in December 2025.
The lights will bring CitiPower Centre into line with other comparable venues around Australia including North Sydney Oval, Alan Border Field and the WACA, and will see the CitiPower Centre in line to host international women's cricket under lights in addition to its existing domestic cricket schedule.
Cricket Victoria CEO, Nick Cummins, said: "This is a transformational step for our venue and for our players and fans. The ability to host evening matches under lights at the CitiPower Centre will create more opportunities for families and fans to attend world-class matches and see our female cricketers in action, without the restrictions of daytime commitments including community cricket, work and school."
Cricket Victoria Chair, Ross Hepburn, said: "Following the organisation's move to its St Kilda headquarters in 2018, the volume of cricket we've been hosting has increased exponentially. We want as many people as possible to be able to attend games here and having the opportunity to do that on summer nights is a key part of our strategy," Hepburn said.
Victorian captain Sophie Molineux, currently in India with Australia's World Cup squad, said the new lights would be a game-changer.
"It is such good news for our program. To be able to play both One-Day and T20 cricket under lights in the future at the CitiPower Centre is a huge boost. Whether for Victoria, in the WBBL or with Australia, it's the best of all worlds," Molineux said.
"We all love playing at CitiPower Centre, and to have more opportunities to do this in front of more fans during peak times will be a huge benefit for all the Victorian players."
The installation of the lights will further position the southern end of Albert Park as a hub for sports and recreation in inner Melbourne. The project will stimulate more retail and hospitality activity for the local business community, particularly for the Fitzroy Street precinct.
