Tākiri Tū Te Matatini: Tainui to host Te Matatini 2027.

An executive vote confirmed the decision just weeks ahead of Te Arikinui’s first Coronation.

Mōtai Tangata Rau at Te Matatini o Te Kāhui Maunga 2025 at Pukekura, Bowl of Brooklands, New Plymouth.

Hopuhopu, in Taupiri, Waikato, is the official venue for Te Matatini 2027, the premier event of Te Ao Māori. Te Matatini Chair, Tā Herewini Parata, confirmed the decision, declaring: “I titi rawa i roto i o mātou whatumanawa, te āhuatanga o te kāinga o Hopuhopu. Nā reira e whakaae ana a Te Matatini kia kawea Te Matatini 2027, ki Hopuhopu.”

The Te Matatini Executive, Te Whare Haka o Tainui, Waikato-Tainui, and 40 delegates participated in a two-day hui at Hopuhopu, where the final vote took place. Speaking to Aukaha News after the announcement, Te Ara Taura Chair Tukoroirangi Morgan expressed his excitement and elation.

“Ka hoki mai te ao! Kaua ko te ao Maaori anake, ka riro ko ngaa parirau taauwhiuwhi o Te Arikinui Ngaawai hono i te po hei manaaki. Ko ngaa mano taangata ka rarangi mai ki raro i te maru o Taupiri, ki Hopuhopu. He koanga ngaakau, he raa hirahira teenei.”

Although Hopuhopu has been confirmed as the venue, it will require large-scale investment in its current state. Once the site of the Hopuhopu Military Camp, the land was returned to Waikato in 1993. Since then, it has been transformed into a hub for the iwi, housing both the Waikato-Tainui headquarters and its research college.

Plans are already in motion to further develop the site. While the 50-acre block offers ample space and benefits from the broader infrastructure of the Waikato region, significant work is required to bring it up to the standard necessary for an event of this scale.