Fairfield Showground is a multi-purpose indoor-outdoor venue situated in

Prairiewood Prairiewood is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia 34 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Fairfield. It is part of the Greater Western Sydney region. Pra ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. Since in the 1970s, it has been a popular venue for multicultural

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

carnival Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival typi ...

s, markets and club meets attracting as many as 20,000 people. Situated in western

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, the showground has around 10,000 sqm of undercover

exhibition An exhibition, in the most general sense, is an organized presentation and display of a selection of items. In practice, exhibitions usually occur within a cultural or educational setting such as a museum, art gallery, park, library, exhibition ...

space and it is overall 33 hectares (79 acres) in size, with parking spaces for over 600 vehicles. One of the largest festival precinct in

Greater Western Sydney Greater Western Sydney (GWS) is a large region of the metropolitan area of Greater Sydney, New South Wales (NSW), Australia that generally embraces the north-west, south-west, central-west, and far western sub-regions within Sydney's metropoli ...

, the showground was developed in the 1950s and is surrounded by

eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as euca ...

bushland, with

Orphan School Creek Orphan School Creek is a storm drain located in inner Sydney, New South Wales. It is a tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not ...

meandering on the north.

Markets

Markets Market is a term used to describe concepts such as: * Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand * Market economy *Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market Geography *Märket, a ...

are held at Fairfield Showground every Saturday from 9am to 4pm in the sheltered area behind the grandstands. The markets are a popular attraction, with space for 600+ stalls,

free entry In economics, free entry is a condition in which firms can freely enter the market for an economic good by establishing production and beginning to sell the product. The assumption of free entry implies that if there are firms earning excessively ...

, food & drink stands and thousands of visitors every weekend. The markets include of

toy store A toy store or toy shop is a type of retail business specializing in selling toys. Notable examples * Hamleys, the world's oldest toy shop * Toys "R" Us, international company now Tru Kids * FAO Schwarz, famous American brand and store * The LEG ...

food booth A food kiosk or food booth (also food stand, temporary food service facility) is generally a temporary structure used to prepare and sell food to the general public, usually where large groups of people are situated outdoors in a park, at a parade ...

dollar stores A variety store (also five and dime (historic), pound shop, or dollar store) is a retail store that sells general merchandise, such as apparel, automotive parts, dry goods, toys, hardware, home furnishings, and a selection of groceries. It us ...

, sporting gear shops,

grocery A grocery store ( AE), grocery shop ( BE) or simply grocery is a store that primarily retails a general range of food products, which may be fresh or packaged. In everyday U.S. usage, however, "grocery store" is a synonym for supermarket, an ...

, hardware,

gardening Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants as part of horticulture. In gardens, ornamental plants are often grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants, such as root vegetables, leaf vegetables, fruits ...

, jewelry, and pet supplies. Additional market nights have been held irregularly. These have included ''Aussie Night Markets'' on Tuesday once per month, with the primary interest being the large number of international cuisine on offer, such as Turkish,

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

and

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

with over 40 multicultural

street food Street food is ready-to-eat food or drinks sold by a hawker, or vendor, in a street or at other public places, such as markets or fairs. It is often sold from a portable food booth, food cart, or food truck and is meant for immediate consumption ...

s and dessert

vendor In a supply chain, a vendor, supplier, provider or a seller, is an enterprise that contributes goods or services. Generally, a supply chain vendor manufactures inventory/stock items and sells them to the next link in the chain. Today, these terms ...

s, 20 craft stores, DJ performances, and also a

boutique A boutique () is a small shop that deals in fashionable clothing or accessories. The word is French for "shop", which derives ultimately from the Ancient Greek ἀποθήκη (''apothēkē'') "storehouse". The term ''boutique'' and also ''d ...

retail section. The markets were closed down periodically during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Entertainment is also provided for children on most weekends. This can include

pony ride A pony ride is an opportunity for children to ride real ponies for a short time, usually seen at fairs, guest ranches, zoos, summer camps, private children's parties and similar places. Children on pony rides do not handle the pony themsel ...

merry-go-round A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (List of sovereign states, international), roundabout (British English), or hurdy-gurdy (an old term in Australian English, in South Australia, SA) is a type of amusement ...

, clown heads, a

jumping castle Inflatable castles (also called closed inflatable trampolines (CITs), bouncing castles, bouncy houses, bounce houses, jumping castles, jumpers, bouncy castles, moon bounces, or moonwalks) are temporary inflatable structures and buildings and simi ...

, and a mini-train ride system which circulates the bushy surroundings.

Facilities

The Parklands Function Centre is used for engagement parties, wedding receptions, anniversaries, school reunions and award presentation nights for up to 250 people. Adjacent to the Showground is the 18-hole Fairfield public

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". Th ...

. The function centre was used as a central hub for Fairfield's 2021 Local Council elections. A harness

racing track A race track (racetrack, racing track or racing circuit) is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. horse racing or greyhound racing). A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also use ...

and club was located on the grounds from late 1964 through to June 2017 when it closed & was demolished to facilitate the large redevelopment. It had ceased full time racing operations in 2004.

Redevelopment

From 2017 onwards the site was significantly redeveloped. In a joint commitment by Fairfield Council, the NSW Government, and the Federal Government, the $28 million redevelopment of the Showground includes three large playing fields, two for football and one for AFL. The main pitch is a FIFA-accredited synthetic field, with the training pitch a regulation turf field. A sports training facility was built in between the three fields, and with the two main football fields complete, the Showgrounds have been used as the training base for

A-League A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...

club

Macarthur FC Macarthur Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in South Western Sydney, New South Wales. It competes in Australia's premier soccer competition, the A-League, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL). On ...

. Fairfield City Council has announced that the facilities would be available for any Sydney bid to host the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

. Frank Carbone has said Fairfield Showground should be included in any Games proposal saying, “We are looking at investing almost $10 million into the showground, and also seeking more funding for further upgrades”. The instance to host the 2026 or 2030 Games in greater western Sydney was put to Premier

Gladys Berejiklian Gladys Berejiklian (born 22 September 1970) is an Australian former politician who served as the 45th premier of New South Wales and the leader of the New South Wales division of the Liberal Party from 2017 to 2021. Berejiklian became a member ...

and Sports Minister Stuart Ayres.

COVID Testing

The showground made

national news National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, c ...

headlines in July 2021 after a

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

testing

clinic A clinic (or outpatient clinic or ambulatory care clinic) is a health facility that is primarily focused on the care of outpatients. Clinics can be privately operated or publicly managed and funded. They typically cover the primary care needs ...

and a vaccination hub were opened in its premises. The area had been a hotspot for cases as well as significant testing demand due to the NSW Government's locality based mandatory testing regime. As a drive in testing facility with limited road access, traffic was backed up for multiple kilometres with waiting times up of to 6 hours. Demand eased when an additional facility was opened at the Endeavour Sports Park, 3 kilometres east of the Showground.

Culture

Assyrian Australians Assyrian Australians ( syr, ܐܵܬܘܿܪ̈ܵܝܹܐ ܕܐܘܼܣܛܪܵܠܝܼܵܐ), refers to ethnic Assyrians possessing Australian nationality. They are descended from the Northern Mesopotamian region, specifically the Assyrian homeland. Today ...

celebrate the

Assyrian New Year Assyrian may refer to: * Assyrian people, the indigenous ethnic group of Mesopotamia. * Assyria, a major Mesopotamian kingdom and empire. ** Early Assyrian Period ** Old Assyrian Period ** Middle Assyrian Empire ** Neo-Assyrian Empire * Assyria ...

annually on 1 April, in ''Fairfield Showground''. Thousands attend the New Year festival and it usually features music and theatrical performances, traditional dancers, food stalls and

fireworks Fireworks are a class of Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a l ...

. Former Australian prime minister

Tony Abbott Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Abbott was born in Londo ...

and other politicians such as

Chris Bowen Christopher Eyles Guy Bowen (born 17 January 1973) is an Australian politician who has been Minister for Climate Change and Energy in the Albanese government since June 2022. He is a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and was first elec ...

Craig Kelly Craig Kelly (born 29 September 1963) is an Australian politician, who represented the Division of Hughes as a Liberal Party and later United Australia Party MP from 2010 to his defeat at the 2022 Australian federal election. Kelly initially ...

Tanya Plibersek Tanya Joan Plibersek (born 2 December 1969) is an Australian politician who served as Deputy Leader of the Labor Party and Deputy Leader of the Opposition from 2013 to 2019. She has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Sydney since 1998 ...

Chris Hayes Christopher Loffredo Hayes (; born February 28, 1979) is an American political commentator, television news anchor, activist, and author. Hayes hosts ''All In with Chris Hayes'', a weekday news and opinion television show on MSNBC. Hayes also ...

and former

NSW premier The premier of New South Wales is the head of government in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Government of New South Wales follows the Westminster Parliamentary System, with a Parliament of New South Wales acting as the legislatu ...

Bob Carr Robert John Carr (born 28 September 1947) is an Australian retired politician and journalist who served as the 39th Premier of New South Wales from 1995 to 2005, as the leader of the NSW Branch of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He later en ...

have attended the festival and made a speech. The Assyrian Australian

Latin pop Latin pop (in Spanish and in Portuguese: Pop latino) is a pop music subgenre that is a fusion of US–style music production with Latin music genres from anywhere in Latin America and Spain. Originating in Spanish-speaking musicians, Latin po ...

band

Azadoota Azadoota () ( syr, ܐܵܙܵܕܘܼܬܵܐ) is an Assyrian Australian worldbeat band formed in 1996 in Sydney, Australia that fuses traditional Assyrian pop and folk with Latin music. Its founder, Robin Zirwanda, the band's percussionist and lead ...

regularly performs in the annual festival. The showground is also home to the Australia's first, largest and longest-running Eid Festival, which commenced in 1987. The festival has grown to now cater for tens of thousands of Muslims and non-Muslims and has included as guests

Yusuf Islam Yusuf Islam (born Steven Demetre Georgiou; ), commonly known by his stage names Cat Stevens, Yusuf, and Yusuf / Cat Stevens, is a British singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His musical style consists of folk, pop, rock, and, later i ...

, famous Australian footballer,

Hazem El Masri Hazem El Masri ( ar, حازم المصري; born 1 April 1976) is a Lebanese Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played as a er in the 1990s and 2000s. An international representative for Australia and Lebanon, and a New ...

, the then Governor-General of Australia,

Michael Jeffery Major General Philip Michael Jeffery, (12 December 1937 – 18 December 2020) was a senior Australian Army officer and vice-regal representative. He was the 28th governor of Western Australia from 1993 to 2000, and the 24th governor-general of ...

and the previous Premier of New South Wales,

Kristina Keneally Kristina Marie Kerscher Keneally (born 19 December 1968) is an American-born Australian politician who was a Labor Senator for New South Wales from February 2018 until April 2022, when she resigned to unsuccessfully contest the House of Represe ...

. The

Chinese New Year Chinese New Year is the festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year, new year on the traditional lunisolar calendar, lunisolar and solar Chinese calendar. In Sinophone, Chinese and other East Asian cultures, the festival is commonly r ...

is annually celebrated in the showground with over 60,000 people attending. More than 40,000 people attend the annual

Vietnamese New Year Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...

, which is held for three days from Friday to Sunday. Both feature fireworks, amusement rides and cultural performances such as

dragon dancing Dragon dance () is a form of traditional dance and performance in Chinese culture. Like the lion dance, it is most often seen during festive celebrations. The dance is performed by a team of experienced dancers who manipulate a long flexible ...

. The ''Fairfield Easter Fair'' will be held annually in the showground for three days starting from 2018 to cater those in the area, which are distant from the

Sydney Royal Easter Show First held in 1823, the Sydney Royal Easter Show, commonly shortened to The Easter Show or The Show, is an annual show held in Sydney, Australia over two weeks around the Easter period. It comprises an agricultural show, an amusement park and a ...

Sydney Olympic Park Sydney Olympic Park is a suburb of Greater Western Sydney, located 13 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Parramatta Council. It is commonly known as Olympic Park but officially na ...

. With a free admission, it will open on Easter from 10am to 10pm, Friday to Sunday, and it will feature over 20

amusement rides Amusement rides, sometimes called carnival rides, are mechanical devices or structures that move people especially kids to create fun and enjoyment. Rides are often perceived by many as being scary or more dangerous than they actually are. This ...

(such as

Bumper cars Bumper cars or dodgems are the generic names for a type of flat amusement ride consisting of multiple small electrically powered cars which draw power from the floor and/or ceiling, and which are turned on and off remotely by an operator. Bumpe ...

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

exhibition, farm animals,

easter egg hunt An egg hunt is an Eastertide game during which decorated eggs or Easter eggs are hidden for children to find. Real hard-boiled eggs, which are typically dyed or painted, artificial eggs made of plastic filled with chocolate or candies, or foil-w ...

sheep shearing Sheep shearing is the process by which the woollen fleece of a sheep is cut off. The person who removes the sheep's wool is called a '' shearer''. Typically each adult sheep is shorn once each year (a sheep may be said to have been "shorn" or ...

reptile Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates (lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephalians ( ...

shows and fireworks, among many things. A

Uruguayan Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

festival, which has been running for nearly three decades and raised $2 million of charity, features hundreds of performers and live music acts, is held annually on August and it's one of the biggest outdoor Latin festivals in Sydney's West. Furthermore, international artists such as

AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...

have performed in the venue in 1975, playing songs from their debut album ''

High Voltage High voltage electricity refers to electrical potential large enough to cause injury or damage. In certain industries, ''high voltage'' refers to voltage above a certain threshold. Equipment and conductors that carry high voltage warrant spec ...

''.AC/DC at Fairfield? Yes, it happened.
by Fairfield Champion

Access

The Liverpool-Parramatta Rapid Bus Transitway has a station close to the showground, as well as a number of encircling bus stops that belong to

Transit Systems Sydney Transit Systems NSW, previously known as Transit Systems Sydney, is a bus operator in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is a subsidiary of Transit Systems. History In November 2012, Transit Systems was awarded a contract by Transport for ...

. Although the main entry is from Smithfield Road, there is another entrance to the showground from Moonlight Road, on the head of Greenfield Road, to the west, which feature a sign indicating the showground's entry.

References

External links

Official WebsiteAustadiums
{{NSW Premier League stadiums Tourist attractions in Sydney Sports venues in Sydney Buildings and structures in Sydney Harness racing in Australia Music venues in Australia Festivals in Sydney Culture of Sydney Retail markets in Sydney Showgrounds in New South Wales