From Friday 16 September, Westfield Parramatta will unveil an extravaganza for sports fans of all ages with ‘Your Sports Field’, a larger-than-life pop-up throughout Parramatta celebrating the city’s rich sporting history.
The two week-long event, proudly funded by the NSW Government through the CBDs Revitalisation Program to create a vibrant 24-hour economy, will feature over-sized sports-themed installations, sports zones for the local community to play in, appearances from sporting legends Peter Sterling and Andrew Redmayne, screening nights of Australia’s most nail-biting sporting matches, professional player-run kids coaching clinics and more.
‘Your Sports Field’ is a family-friendly, free outdoor event designed in celebration of the impact of sport in the Parramatta community and has been delivered in partnership with grassroots community groups and professional sporting teams.
Coaching clinics and skills training workshops will also be hosted at Centenary Square to fine-tune the skills of Parramatta’s next generation of sports stars and get them face to face with their homegrown soccer, netball, cricket, NRL and boxing heroes.
Legend player appearances will take place at Centenary Square Parramatta during the evenings to celebrate sporting greats across NRL, Soccer and Basketball. This includes NRL legend Peter Sterling: on Friday, September 16, and soccer star Andrew Redmayne on Saturday, September 17.
Over the 15-day event, Westfield Parramatta will also host a Collectors Card Grading service for avid sports fans to get their memorabilia professionally graded on-site. Customers who spend over $150 in-centre will receive a complimentary Sports Trading Card to kick off their collection, given at random and ranging between $5 and $1000 in value.
A sneaker personalisation service will also be available for customers to put their own spin on their favourite sneakers. On Friday, September 23, the western Sydney Wanderers will also have soccer balls available to personalise for their fans for a small fee.
For the kids, a sports zone will also be activated in-centre with foosball, toss the bag games, a giant Connect 4, face painting, and balloon bending. A free sunset screening of the 1996 live action/animated sports comedy film Space Jam will be held on Saturday 24 September.
Scentre Group General Manager of Brand Activation and Community, Jacqui Waine, said the pop-up event is an energetic and engaging experience designed to showcase the best of Parramatta in an exciting new way.
“Your Sports Field is a one-of-a-kind event that reinforces our ambition to celebrate our local community and deliver unmissable experiences for our customers,” she said.
“We can’t wait to celebrate the sporting accomplishments Parramatta is famous for and welcoming customers to experience all the activities happening in-centre and at Centenary Square.”
Member for Parramatta Dr Geoff Lee said, “The NSW Government’s $50 million CBDs Revitalisation Program is reigniting social connection and economic activity in urban centres across Greater Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong, through a range of arts, music, food and beverage and cultural events.”
24-Hour Economy Commissioner Michael Rodrigues said after a tough time for retail, hospitality and the sporting industries, this investment is helping business draw crowds with a unique sporting draw card.
“Family friendly activities like the Your Sports Field activation will draw people back into the Parramatta CBD encouraging audiences to reconnect in urban environments, and in the process accelerating economic recovery,” he said.
“The Office of the 24-Hour Economy Commissioner is committed to revitalising our key urban centres.”
Your Sports Field is proudly presented by Westfield Parramatta.
The full program can be found at http://www.westfield.com.au/Parramatta.
Ellie Busby is a news reporter for Western Sydney Publishing Group. A graduate of the University of Hertfordshire and Western Sydney University, she is a journalism Major. Ellie has worked with Universal Media, The Cova Project and for a range of other organisations. In 2024, Ellie was named Young Writer of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards.