Over the past decade, we have worked with the play, active recreation and sport sector, as well as councils to develop regional spaces and place strategies and national strategies for different facility types, like aquatic and indoor facilities. These strategies are valuable tools for regional long-term planning and supporting infrastructure development for communities. 

Currently, we lack a coordinated view of national-level sport facilities. Many decisions about facilities – whether to build new, upgrade or maintain existing ones – are made at local or regional levels. This approach doesn’t always reflect our national needs for athletes and fans. 

The strategy will focus on national-level sport facilities, including high performance training venues and stadiums that host sporting events. It aims to provide a national perspective to help decision makers prioritise and invest where it is most needed. 

Our approach  

As part of this work, we will assess how well our current facilities meet the: 

• training needs of our high performance athletes 
• needs of athletes and fans for national-level competitions and international events. 

This will involve looking at where training venues are located and how they are set up, as well as assessing if upgrades and new facilities are needed to support continued success on the world stage. At a high level, we will evaluate the requirements for stadiums to meet the diverse needs of fans, professional athletes and teams. We will also evaluate what is needed for everyday operations and hosting major events. This analysis will help us prioritise what facilities we need nationwide, where and when we need them, and what upgrades or changes are required. 

We will also develop national investment guidelines and explore ways to improve coordination among government agencies on infrastructure priorities. 

Who is involved? 

Sport NZ is leading this work, engaging with key stakeholders and working closely with High Performance Sport New Zealand. Independent experts will assess some of the current facilities and develop financial models and advice on ownership structures. 

An advisory group has been established to ensure we consider the interests of a broad range of stakeholders. Their role is to provide expert advice to help inform and guide the development of the strategy.

Our progress 

The advisory group was appointed in December 2024 and we began gathering information to develop the strategy early in 2025. 

We will engage with key stakeholders during the development of the strategy and plan to share a draft for feedback by August 2025. Our aim is to complete the strategy by the end of 2025. 

As we progress, we will update this webpage and share information in our Sector Update newsletter.