From April 24-26, fans from across New Zealand, Australia, Fiji and the Pacific came together to celebrate the new $683 million Te Kaha stadium with world-class rugby and family-friendly fun, which included a mix of live music and cultural entertainment.
After the event, Highlanders head coach Jamie Joseph said it was something Dunedin should seriously consider.
‘‘Don’t forget there’s 20,000 students that choose to live in Dunedin for four or five years.
‘‘Dunedin’s an awesome place to host something like Super Round.
‘‘We’ve got an indoor stadium that will lend itself quite well.’’
Highlanders assistant coach and former star player Ben Smith said the Christchurch event was ‘‘a fantastic experience’’.
‘‘Great vibe in the city, easy with the stadium being so close to the town centre and everything that’s around it ... yeah, I thought it was awesome.
‘‘I would say they’ll get another crack at it when you look at what they have done over these last three days.’’
He could see no reason why Dunedin could not host a Super Round in the future.
‘‘I’m biased, but I think Dunedin could definitely host it.
‘‘We’ve got the same sort of set-up around rugby people keen to get along to support it, and the students, and people from around the region.
‘‘I think we could do something similar.’’
Dunedin Mayor Sophie Barker agreed.
‘‘Anything’s possible.
‘‘I think that we’re certainly going to have to be looking at having more events in our stadium — homegrown events, where we do things a little bit differently as well.’’
She said an event such as Super Round would have a major impact on Dunedin’s economy, particularly its accommodation, hospitality and tourism sectors.
‘‘We need great big events like this to trigger a whole lot of that benefit, especially at this time of the year when things are getting a bit quieter and it’s heading into the offseason.’’
While some had said Dunedin’s lack of accommodation and smaller population meant it would not be able to support such an event, she disagreed.
‘‘We did have the Rugby World Cup games here, back in 2011, and we coped with those very well.
‘‘So I’m sure that we’d be able to cope with large events in the city, especially at this time of the year when you haven’t got the pressure from international visitors as well.
‘‘When we’re holding events in months like February and March, we’re already at high capacity due to tourism numbers.
‘‘But it’s good to hold events like this in the offseason or the shoulder season, because then we do have that accommodation capacity.’’
Over the next few months, the Dunedin City Council would investigate the viability of holding a Super Round in the city, Ms Barker said.
‘‘We should absolutely be looking at any way to get the stadium humming.
‘‘There’s a good chance of putting a successful bid in for it — absolutely.
‘‘We’re very well known for our ability to host amazing experiences.
‘‘It’s not just the rugby games, it’s all of the experiences around it that build a whole reason for coming for a weekend or a little bit longer.
‘‘I think that’s one of our competitive advantages.’’
While the desire for a Super Round to be played in Dunedin is high, it appears they may have some competition for running the event.
Super Rugby Pacific chief executive Jack Mesley said there were other interested parties as well, but Christchurch had a head start.
The event attracted more than 70,000 fans over the three days, and Mr Mesley said many of Christchurch’s organisers wanted to see the event return there next year.
RNZ reported yesterday a three-year deal for Christchurch might be on the cards, Mr Mesley showing enthusiasm about the idea at a press conference after the Chiefs beat the Fijian Drua in the final match on Sunday night.
Super Round was previously held in Melbourne from 2022-2024, but then the organisers took a year off, and the event was moved to Christchurch.
‘‘Obviously, these guys, the Crusaders, and the city backed it to bring it back,’’ Mr Mesley said.
‘‘We will certainly be starting there. But, you know, we will have conversations with others as well.’’
