It has been an outstanding start to elite sport and entertainment on the Burswood Peninsula.

As the first AFL season at the new venue draws to a close, there is little doubt the new Perth Stadium has been a success.

The qualifying final between West Coast and Collingwood was a spectacle on — and off — the playing field.

There was a record crowd of 59,585 spectators at the third-biggest ground in the country and the game sold out just minutes after tickets went on sale.

A record crowd of 59,585 watched the Eagles win over Collingwood in the qualifying final. ( AAP: Richard Wainwright )

Those who couldn't get a ticket watched from the pub next door or from home.

It was a terrific display of the strength of football in Western Australia and the benefits are already being felt beyond sport with the shift from cars to public transport, the promise of more international and interstate visitors and the civic pride that comes with having such a high-quality piece of infrastructure in the state.

It is clear that the stadium has been embraced by the community.

Aside from big numbers at the football, the new stadium also proved a hit with cricket fans. ( ABC News: Jarrod Lucas )

But, in a sport-mad state, did we underestimate the appetite of the WA public by capping the capacity of the new ground at 60,000?

There were early indications from former premier Colin Barnett during the early design phase in 2012 that the venue was set to be bigger.

"It is capable of being expanded quite simply to 70,000 and now capable of being expanded at a later date to 80,000," he said.

But stadium planners were adamant that 60,000 was the right number after two years of research and consultation with the sporting codes.

They took into account maximising the atmosphere at the ground for all games, population growth in Perth and forecasts of future memberships for Fremantle, West Coast and Perth Scorchers.

The stadium does have the ability to expand to 70,000 within the existing structure.

Seats can be added between the top tier and the halo roof.

It is understood that would be a costly exercise and one the State Government would think twice about, given that the stadium has just cost $1.6 billion to build.

But judging by the AFL crowds in 2018, an argument could be mounted to do so.

The stadium has been built so that it can be expanded to accommodate 70,000 within the existing structure. ( ABC News: Andrew O'Connor )

West Coast has averaged a crowd of 53,989 in games at Perth Stadium.

Loading

The only time the crowd dipped below 50,000 was a Sunday afternoon game against the Bulldogs in round 18 that 46,854 people attended.

Fremantle, a team that finished 14th having won eight games for the season, still averaged 42,320 in its first season at Burswood.

In fact, according to the AFL Crowds Twitter account, the Eagles set an all-time league record of 52,837 during the home and away season for home average attendance against interstate opponents.

The Dockers performed strongly, as well, with an average crowd against interstate opponents at Perth Stadium of 40,288.

It is easy to see this figure rising significantly once the club starts winning more games.

Altogether, average home and away crowds in Western Australia were up 36 per cent in 2018.

Many of those fans were left disappointed when they couldn't get a ticket to last weekend's final, even though 6,000 seats were available to the general public.

And the Eagles said this week they still had 10,000 families on a waiting list to become seated members, despite the increased capacity at the new stadium.

Now, a lot of this could be the novelty appeal of a brand new venue, but is difficult to imagine Eagles crowds dropping off too much in future seasons with such a substantial waiting list.

It has not even been open a year but perhaps we are already starting to outgrow Western Australia's new home of sport.