The North Melbourne Grand Final Breakfast is a breakfast function organised by the North Melbourne Football Club on the morning of the AFL Grand Final. The breakfast marks the traditional beginning to Grand Final day and is one of the biggest social highlights on the Australian sporting calendar. Watching the event is a ritual for many footy fans and the function plays a huge role in the pre match build up for the Grand Final.
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The first Grand Final Breakfast was held in 1967 at the Southern Cross hotel, as a valuable fundraising event. The inaugural guest speaker was the VFL's Administrative director Eric McCutchan. The event rose to prominence in the 1970s when the breakfast began to be televised across Victoria, and was officially endorsed by the VFL as the official pre-match Grand Final function. Since then the event has grown into a significant money raiser for North Melbourne, and the guest list has grown to include Prime Ministers, State Premiers and other celebrities. [1]
Although many clubs hold their own Grand Final Breakfasts, the North Melbourne Breakfast was the first breakfast and is currently the only breakfast to be officially endorsed by the AFL. This ensures a guest list that reads as a ‘who’s who’ of Australian business, sport, entertainment and politics. The breakfast includes a Grand Auction, with all proceeds being donated to the Starlight Children's Foundation. [2]
Former Prime Minister Bob Hawke described the event as “one of this nation’s great traditions”.
Paul Keating referred to the function as “a tradition in itself”
Prime Minister John Howard described it as “a tremendous institution …. and the most eclectic gathering of people you could possibly imagine”. [3]
| Year | Location | Guest speaker | Football Personality of the Year | North Melbourne's Media Award | Sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Southern Cross Hotel | Eric McCutchan | Not Awarded | Not Awarded | |
| 1968 | Southern Cross Hotel | Bruce Andrews | Ted Whitten | ||
| 1969 | Southern Cross Hotel | Sir Henry Winneke | Kevin Murray | ||
| 1970 | Southern Cross Hotel | Honourable Donald Chipp | Norm Smith | ||
| 1971 | Southern Cross Hotel | Bob Hawke | Ron Barrassi | ||
| 1972 | Southern Cross Hotel | Sir John Gorton | Ron Casey | ||
| 1973 | Southern Cross Hotel | Jack Galbally | Keith Greig | ||
| 1974 | Southern Cross Hotel | Jim Cairns | Doug Wade | ||
| 1975 | Southern Cross Hotel | Sir Rupert Hamer | Lou Richards | ||
| 1976 | Southern Cross Hotel | Malcolm Fraser | Eric McCutchan | ||
| 1977 | Southern Cross Hotel | Phillip Adams | John Kennedy | ||
| 1978 | Southern Cross Hotel | Norman Banks | HSV7's World of Sport | ||
| 1979 | Southern Cross Hotel | Peter Thompson | Barry Cable | ||
| 1980 | Southern Cross Hotel | Jack Thompson | Jack Hamilton | ||
| 1981 | Southern Cross Hotel | Kevin Bartlett | Jack Dyer | ||
| 1982 | Southern Cross Hotel | Malcolm Fraser | Tom Hafey & Malcolm Blight | ||
| 1983 | Southern Cross Hotel | Bob Hawke | Kevin Bartlett | Doug Heywood | |
| 1984 | Southern Cross Hotel | Olympic medallists | Bernie Quinlan | Scott Palmer | |
| 1985 | Southern Cross Hotel | Allen Aylett | John Kennedy | Harry Beitzel | |
| 1986 | Southern Cross Hotel | Jack Hamilton | Leigh Matthews | Ron Carter | |
| 1987 | Southern Cross Hotel | John Winneke | Wayne Schimmelbusch | Tom Lahiff | |
| 1988 | Southern Cross Hotel | Sir Llew Edwards | Allan Jeans | Graham Dawson & Peter Booth | |
| 1989 | Southern Cross Hotel | Tony Fitzgerald QC | Simon Madden | Ian Major | |
| 1990 | Southern Cross Hotel | Professor Geoffrey Blainey | Michael Tuck | Bill Jacobs | |
| 1991 | Southern Cross Hotel | Thomas Keneally | Jim Stynes | Bob Davis | |
| 1992 | Southern Cross Hotel | Dr. Don Cordner | Collingwood FC Centenary | Rex Hunt | |
| 1993 | Southern Cross Hotel | Malcolm Turnbull | Alan Schwab | Harry Beitzel & Tom Lahiff | |
| 1994 | Southern Cross Hotel | John "Darcy" Dugan | Tony Shaw & Doug Hawkins | Coodabeen Champions | |
| 1995 | Exhibition Building | David Hill | Tony Lockett | Mike Sheahan | |
| 1996 | Exhibition Building | Bryce Courtenay | Ross Oakley | Eddie McGuire | Toshiba |
| 1997 | |||||
| 1998 | |||||
| 1999 | |||||
| 2000 | |||||
| 2001 | AXA | ||||
| 2002 | Docklands Stadium | AXA | |||
| 2003 | AXA | ||||
| 2004 | Glenn Archer & Anthony Stevens | AXA | |||
| 2005 | |||||
| 2006 | TAC | ||||
| 2007 | TAC | ||||
| 2008 | The Grand Hyatt | Leigh Matthews | |||
| 2009 | Exhibition Centre | Interactive |