If Melbourne is the home of Australian sport, then the MCG is the heart of it. This iconic venue is the largest stadium in the Southern Hemisphere, boasting a capacity of over 100,000 people. It’s a stadium rich in history and is the scene of some of Australian sport's most memorable moments. The MCG is the birthplace of Test Cricket, the home for the AFL Grand Final and has hosted the Olympic and Commonwealth Games along with a range of major events and concerts.

Located in arguably the world's premier sports precinct, the neighbouring Melbourne Park and AAMI Park venues host Australian Open tennis, A-League football and both rugby codes, allowing UCFB students a truly unique sporting and cultural experience.

YouTube video
Melbourne Global Sports Summit 2023 Highlights

On campus and online students, as well as alumni, are able to attend the Global Sports Summit event at Melbourne Cricket Ground each year. The summit is based around 4-5 days of specially tailored talks, workshops and visits specific to the Australian sports industry.

The schedule in Melbourne, like the summits at UCFB‘s other hubs, will be based around four themes:

  • From the pitch – hear from those who contribute towards the playing side of sport such as coaches, match analysts and sports scientists;
  • From industry – find out more from those who’re responsible for what happens behind the scenes, including marketing managers, agents and media officers;
  • From the boardroom – learn about how the big decisions are taken at clubs and organisations from the likes of chief executives and chief finance officers;
  • Cultural activities – this will include visits to national landmarks, more of Melbourne's leading stadiums and at least one live sports fixture (subject to fixture lists).

Guest speakers for the summit will be confirmed closer to the event, but attendees will be able to hear from the leaders and key personnel at some of Melbourne's leading sports and clubs.

An eye opening experience delivered by the best in the industry

Henry DaviesBA (Hons) Football Business & Marketing

Multiple time zone delivery

From the 2021/22 academic year, our GIS MSc Football Business and MSc International Sport Management online programme will be delivered in three time zones for the Americas, Europe and Africa, and Australasia. Synchronous, live sessions will be delivered for the GMT/BST, AEST/AEDT and EST/EDT time zones to provide the greatest studying flexibility. To further enhance the learning experience around the world, there will be various touchpoints throughout the year for all students, including guest speaker sessions and networking opportunities.

Global Insight Series

The Global Insight Series is an elite on-campus and online networking and thought leadership series. Delivered both online through a variety of digital publications, podcasts, videos and seminars, with lives seminars also held across our various GIS & UCFB campuses and business centres, this key professional development facet of our offering is distributed to the mobile phone and laptop of every member of the GIS & UCFB family, students, alumni and business partners alike.

The Global Insight Series provides unprecedented access and collaboration opportunities between the world’s elite sports network.

Click here to find out more.

Australia is abundant with professional sporting teams, making it a really big and well supported industry. Add to that the range of major international events hosted annually in Melbourne, headlined by the Australian Open, the Grand Prix, and Spring Racing Carnival, and you realise there is so much going on in this industry.

Lewis O’FlynnCommercial Partnerships Manager at the MCG

Melbourne loves sport

Sport in Melbourne is a religion. From AFL to cricket, and rugby to tennis, this sports-mad city caters for it all, and at the centre of it is the sports precinct. As well as the Rod Laver Arena and being home to the annual Australian Open, the centre-piece of the precinct is the world-famous Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). For those who aspire to work in the Australian sports industry, it’s almost impossible to look past the capital of Victoria…

Click here for your guide to sport in Melbourne.

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The MCG is used for cricket, AFL, rugby and concerts.

Discover Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital of Victoria and sits on the banks of the Yarra River. The city as we know it now was fuelled following the Second World War, with multiculturalism and an active arts scene helping to grow tourism to what it is today. The city is regularly listed as one of the best cities in the world to live in.

Your guide to Melbourne
A brief history

Melbourne is the capital of Victoria and sits on the banks of the Yarra River. It’s widely regarded as the world’s leading sporting city due to its high concentration of state-of-the-art facilities and the number of annual international events held there. Its population really expanded in the 1850s during the ‘gold rush’, with a number of immigrants arriving in the city. This saw the city boom, with the building of schools, galleries, churches and now-heritage buildings. Melbourne as we know it now was fuelled following the Second World War, with multiculturalism and an active arts scene helping to grow tourism to what it is today. The city is regularly listed as one of the best cities in the world to live in.

Things to do

Locals will tell you that Melbourne is the culture capital of Australia, with museums and sites to match many of the greatest cities in the world. Federation Square is the place to hang out to celebrate a big win for the Baggy Greens or just take in the sights and the sounds of the city; the Royal Exhibition Building, situated in Carlton Gardens and given Unesco World Heritage Status, harks back to 19th century Melbourne; and Chapel Street is renowned for people’s ability to spend money and shop. Melbourne street art is also recognised around the world, with the city council designating certain areas for artists to showcase their work, and St Kilda is home to Melbourne’s most unusual residents – penguins!

Sport in Melbourne

Sport in Melbourne is a religion. From AFL to cricket, and rugby to tennis, this sports-mad city caters for it all, and at the centre of it is the sports precinct. As well as the Rod Laver Arena and being home to the annual Australian Open, the centre-piece of the precinct is the world-famous Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

Click here for more information on sport in Melbourne.

Food and drink

There’s coffee, and then there’s Melbourne coffee. Locals take their espresso very seriously, with the city regularly listed as one of the go to places in the world to get your caffeine hit. Seven Seeds Coffee Roasters is popular among young professionals and is the brainchild of Melbourne coffee royalty, Mark Dundon. Aussies love their meat pies, so once you’ve decided what filling you’d like from the cabinet at Pure Pies (as recommended by the Herald Sun), the only question you’re left to answer is would you like sauce or not? For those who like their dining fine, Attica is a regular in the best restaurant guides for all of Australia, not just Melbourne.

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Melbourne is regularly voted as one of the best cities in the world to live in.

We’re sure you have questions about UCFB and our global hubs, so we’ve put together some handy FAQs which we think tells you everything you need to know about our events.

Global Insight Series

Launching in 2019, the Global Insight Series is an elite on-campus and online networking and thought leadership series. Delivered both online through a variety of digital publications, podcasts, videos and seminars, with lives seminars also held across our various UCFB campuses and business centres, this key professional development facet of our offering is distributed to the mobile phone and laptop of every member of the UCFB family, students, alumni and business partners alike.

The Global Insight Series provides unprecedented access and collaboration opportunities between the world’s elite sports network.

Click here to find out more.

Global Sports Summits

Each GIS global hub hosts an annual global sports summit, bringing together UCFB and GIS students, alumni and leading sports industry professionals in some of the most advanced sports and entertainment venues in the world.

Global Summits
Register for a Global Sports Industry Networking Event

See what it's like to be a student on our unique sports degrees and build your network at one of our Global Sports Industry Networking Event, at each GIS stadium hub.

UCFB global news