Game, set and match for dressing room weddings
The Eden Park dressing room where the All Blacks go to strip off their muddy kits after a big match is being converted into something much more romantic.
Sports-mad couples can now tie the knot in the room — used by teams including the All Blacks and Black Caps — now dubbed the Change Room Chapel.
And the decor is more than sweaty towels and smelly rugby boots. The chapel can be themed and decked out with flowers or jerseys of the teams that play at Eden Park.
Couples also have access to the field for their wedding photos.
A basic package carries a price tag of $795 plus GST. It includes access to the changing rooms and turf, conducting the ceremony, champagne for the newlyweds and a personalised Change Room Chapel wedding certificate.
While the iconic spot has hosted weddings before, the chapel is a new venture.
Among couples to have included Eden Park as part of their big day are Han-Ting (Karen) Liu and Weipeng (Michael) Liu.
The Auckland-based newlyweds
We have seen [Eden Park] on TV but we never thought we would step on the field. Bride Han-Ting Liu
had their wedding photos taken at the stadium about three weeks ago after a church ceremony.
Han-Ting, a school teacher, described the experience as “amazing” and “unbelievable”, and said workmates who had seen her wedding photos were blown away.
“We have seen [Eden Park] on TV but we never thought we would step on the field,” she said.
“We were truly blessed and it was definitely an unforgettable experience for all of us who visited the venue.”
Recently, venue management allowed a rugby-mad couple to use the ground’s big screen to reveal the gender of their first baby to family.
Eden Park chief executive Nick Sautner said the new chapel offered a wedding experience “unmatched” in New Zealand. “For many, sport is a religion and to combine memorable sporting moments with a couple’s special day at New Zealand’s national stadium will guarantee a truly unique wedding day.”
Sautner said Eden Park was expecting bookings from both locals and overseas visitors.
Valentine’s Day and the anniversaries of the All Blacks’ Rugby World Cup victories at Eden Park in 1987 and 2011 are still available for wedding bookings.