Sydney’s $7m bid to steal the trackside glitz and glamour from Melbourne

Sydney is taking its racing rivalry with Melbourne off the track with a new Everest-themed version of Flemington’s Birdcage at Royal Randwick.

The exclusive Melbourne Cup carnival enclosure has long been a drawcard for big business and stars of the television, film, music and fashion industries.

But having challenged the southern state’s traditional foothold in the spring with the $20 million slot race, The Everest, Sydney plans to give Melbourne a run for its money in rolling out the red carpet.

The Peter V’landys-led Racing NSW has struck a deal with the Australian Turf Club, which owns the Randwick course, to set up Base Camp, a $7 million facility inspired by sport VIP hubs at the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix and the Australian Open tennis in Melbourne and LIV Golf in Adelaide.

ATC chairman Tim Hale said the precinct was a new step in building Sydney’s spring carnival.

“Royal Randwick’s world-class status is now further enhanced with a brilliant space trackside to view The Everest and Sydney spring carnival,” he said.

“With vision and support from Racing NSW and the proven track record of the ATC in delivering a race-day experience like nothing else, this is an outstanding development for our club.”

The Melbourne Birdcage is described by its organisers as “the world’s most lavish temporary facility for corporate guests”.

Bob Geldof and Elizabeth Hurley were among the famous faces mixing with heavy-hitters of the business world during its Cup carnival in 2024 and prominent attendees over the years have included James Packer, Naomi Campbell, Nicole Kidman and Kim Kardashian.

Racing authorities have ambitions for Sydney’s own corporate and celebrity mecca to hit the same heights, but trackside, as opposed to the Birdcage, where some marquees don’t have a view of the course and there are those who spend the day without seeing a horse.

The other key difference is that it is planned to be in place year-round, not a pop-up facility for a carnival.

It will accommodate up to 3000 guests at a time and replace the marquee just past the bend beyond the finish line at Randwick, which has been used at the venue since it was purchased from Sydney Olympics organisers following the 2000 Games.

A modular, shipping container-style setting is being designed by Melbourne-based company Spacecube.

It is the latest chapter in a hotly contested interstate landscape in which relations between Australia’s two largest racing jurisdictions have been rocky over the years.

Noses were put out of joint below the border by the creation of new events, including The Everest and the $10 million Golden Eagle, which has competed with Melbourne’s spring carnival for eyeballs as well as leading horses and jockeys.

Racing NSW then took Racing Victoria to court two years ago, alleging anti-competitive behaviour.

That case has been called off, and V’landys’ long-held desire for The Everest to be granted group 1 status has been realised.

But the launch of Base Camp, devised to give Sydney a premium corporate sport offering at a level not currently available, shapes as another example of taking on Melbourne racing.

The ATC has a development application with NSW Planning for a seven-story hotel and function centre on that part of the racecourse land, which lies near Alison Road at the northern end of the track, but the new corporate area will be located there while that submission remains under consideration.

The race club reported a sold-out crowd of 49,117 for last year’s running of The Everest.