Bailey Smith made a mockery of Ballarat's Mars Stadium this year, cracking a gag about its miserly crowd capacity as it undergoes construction.
Six months on, the Western Bulldogs' two regular-season AFL games slated to be played at Mars Stadium in 2026 have been relocated.
In an agreement with the City of Ballarat and Visit Victoria finalised in December 2024, the Bulldogs were set to play two regular-season matches at Mars Stadium each season between 2025 and 2027.
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But the second 2025 game scheduled for Ballarat was relocated to Marvel Stadium in Melbourne and now both regular-season matches that were set to be played at Mars Stadium in 2026 will also instead be held at Marvel Stadium.
As a compromise, Mars Stadium will host three 2026 pre-season matches as well as two games in the 2028 home-and-away season.
The two regular-season matches promised to Ballarat for 2027 remain unaffected, as does the one AFLW game set to be played at Mars Stadium in 2027.
The redevelopment of the venue is expected to be complete by September 2026.
Smith, who crossed from the Bulldogs to Geelong during the 2024 trade period, took a swipe at Ballarat when he was asked after the Cats' clash with Collingwood in May how it felt to play in front of 82,000 spectators at the MCG.
"Beautiful, mate," Smith told Fox Footy's Cameron Mooney. "Not getting that at Ballarat."
Earlier that day, a clash between the Bulldogs and Port Adelaide in Ballarat had only attracted 4814 spectators.
Both the small capacity and the sight of an AFL match being played with tractors and plains of dirt in the background had people sneering.
"Arriving at this decision has not been easy and we understand and accept the outcome," Bulldogs chief executive Ameet Bains said in a club statement on Wednesday.
"The club's commitment to Ballarat remains absolute and the resumption of AFL matches in Ballarat remains an essential part of our partnership.
"We look forward to bringing our AFL squad to town for next month's Community Camp and are proud of the work that our Community Foundation – through our office in Ballarat – delivers across the region every week of the year.
"We're extremely grateful for the understanding and support of our Ballarat members and fans, and each of our Ballarat partners.
"We love the passionate support of the Ballarat faithful and hope to be playing in our home away from home for a very long time to come."
The Dogs' statement said Ballarat members would receive access to any two of the club's 11 regular-season AFL home games scheduled for Marvel Stadium in 2026.
The AFL's head of strategy and scheduling, Josh Bowler, said: "This means more members and supporters will be able to enjoy the action of the home-and-away season at a larger venue, while Ballarat fans can still look forward to three exciting pre-season games in their backyard in February."
The redevelopment will increase the Mars Stadium seating capacity from 5000 to 10,000, with the overall capacity remaining at 11,000.
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