The Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) is proud to announce former MCC President, Michael Happell, has been formally awarded Honorary Life membership at the Club’s 187th Annual General Meeting (AGM) last night.
Mr Happell received the Club’s highest honour in recognition of his dedication as MCC President, steering the Club through one of its most challenging periods - the COVID-19 pandemic.
Joining the MCC Committee in May 2011, Mr Happell quickly became recognised for his leadership potential, promoted to Treasurer within three months of joining the Committee.
He sered as Treasurer for six years and Vice-President for two years before being elected President in March 2019.
The COVID-19 pandemic, which saw the world plunged to an unprecedented halt throughout 2020 and 2021 presented many challenges for the Club.
Through this period, Mr Happell supported members, staff and volunteers throughout the lockdowns. He also navigated the closure of the MCG, relocation of events, matches played behind closed doors and the re-opening of the stadium with capacity restrictions and COVIDSafe Plans.
During this trying period, the MCC Flexipay initiative was introduced as a way to assist members in paying their membership fees during the pandemic, allowing payments to be made in set increments throughout the membership season. The popularity of this program saw it become part of standard membership operations.
After the pandemic, events returned to the MCG in record numbers, including a capacity crowd of 100,024 for the 2022 AFL Grand Final, two huge crowds in December 2022 for Guns N’ Roses and Billy Joel and two record-breaking Ed Sheeran shows of almost 110,000 each in March 2023.
Throughout his presidency, the MCG also hosted the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Final in March 2020 between Australia and India – which at the time was the second-highest attended female sporting fixture worldwide, the postponed ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in 2022 and tour visits from Manchester United and Crystal Palace F.C.
The stadium itself underwent a number of upgrades, refreshes and renovations – most notably the relaunch and rebrand of the Australian Sports Museum following a $17 million renovation in February 2020, and a refresh of the MCC Museum in 2021.
In early 2022, Delaware North was launched as the new catering partner for the MCG, bringing local brands and flavours to the MCG, and introduced the Committee Room by Grossi – a new menu offering in the prestigious room from renowned Melbourne chef, Guy Grossi.
A number of food and bar outlets around the stadium were also refreshed in partnership with Delaware North – including beloved member dining spot, the Trumble Bar and Café.
On a community front, the MCC Foundation welcomed and supported six new community partners during Mr Happell’s presidency – Bachar Houli Foundation, National Indigenous Cricket Championships, Melbourne Indigenous Transition School, Sports Excellence Scholarship Fund, Santa Teresa Oval Project and Special Olympics Australia.
The Club also launched its Reconciliation Action Plan at the Reflect level – a journey it continues to this day.
Despite disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Club Sport thrived during Mr Happell’s time as President, most notably the Melbourne Football Club, which claimed its drought-breaking AFL premiership in 2021 and inaugural AFLW premiership in 2022.
MCC members also excelled on the international scale with 10 members competing at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, bringing home 15 medals, and 10 members at the Tokyo Olympic Games, bringing home eight medals including one gold.
On the Club front, Mr Happell led the changes to the 50-Year membership classification during the 2022 Annual General Meeting, which saw the formalisation of the 50-Year membership category in the Club Rules and introduced a 50-Year Social membership option – a legacy of his time as President.
Mr Happell retired from the presidency in March 2023 at the end of his four-year term.
The MCC Committee thanks Michael for his contribution, dedication, care and exceptional service to the Club, and congratulates him on his Honorary Life membership.
The last Honorary Life member inducted was former MCC Chief Executive, Stephen Gough, at last year’s AGM. For a list of Melbourne Cricket Club Honorary Life members, click here.