Sevens heaven: Ballymore upgrade 20 years in making

An upgraded Ballymore will house Australia's rugby sevens program and the Wallaroos, while an 8000-seat arena will complete a precinct overhaul first promised nearly 20 years ago.

Queensland Rugby Union, Rugby Australia and the state government on Thursday confirmed the project, which will feature a new training pitch, gym, team rooms and office space at the famed Brisbane venue.

Crucially, the derelict eastern stand will also be demolished to create a multi-purpose rectangular stadium, with construction to begin this year.

It comes after the first stage of the Ballymore project's completion, which resulted in the National Rugby Training Centre and Queensland Reds headquarters, was completed in 2023.

That was considered a triumph in itself, given a $25 million John Howard project funding promise in 2017 was torpedoed the following year by Kevin Rudd after Labor won the federal election.

"This is an historic moment for Australian Rugby, and the benefits from today's announcement will be felt for generations," Rugby Australia boss Phil Waugh said.

"The major upgrade of Ballymore will ensure the game's spiritual home in Queensland will evolve into a high-performance centre of excellence to rival any around the rugby world.''

The men's and women's sevens teams will move from Sydney ahead of the 2032 Brisbane Games, and the Wallaroos will have their own space ahead of a home 2029 World Cup.

The national triathlon program has relocated to the Gold Coast, but this is the first Olympic sport to shift its base to Brisbane, and comes as the sevens outfits look to add to the gold won by the women in the sport's debut in Rio 10 years ago.

"It is fitting they will soon call the Olympic city home, alongside our Wallaroos and Australian men's sevens squads," Waugh said of what will be known as the Teams In Gold facility.

Before the first Ballymore upgrades, the dilapidated site was bleeding $1 million annually in maintenance and repairs.

Now, after six consecutive operational profits, the QRU has the platform to achieve their goal of becoming "the best rugby province in the world" by 2030.

"This is a day of huge significance for rugby in Queensland and Australia," QRU boss David Hanham said.

"We set out with a clear and ambitious vision to create a truly world-class high-performance and community sporting precinct.