The AFL’s official free-to-air broadcaster will cowl the 2023 season with none devoted speak exhibits overlaying the sport in a transfer that’s been described as a “slap in the face” for the league.
The Herald Sun is reporting Channel 7 has opted towards returning both Game Day of Talking Footy to the screens of AFL followers this yr attributable to ‘budget issues’.
Both applications had been axed in 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic, with Channel 7’s head of community sport Lewis Martin declaring it will solely be a “temporary hiatus” for each applications on the time.
The TV community then confronted blowback from the AFL over the shortage of devoted AFL programming as the 2 companions butted heads throughout TV rights negotiations in 2022.
Amid these negotiations there was contemporary optimism that Channel 7 would not less than revive Game Day on Sundays in 2023, nonetheless these plans have now been dashed.
That leaves Channel 9 with a monopoly on free-to-air AFL speak exhibits, with each the Sunday Footy Show and Footy Classified going from power to power in current seasons.
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Meanwhile Channel 7 has needed to depend on its extremely well-liked Front Bar to characteristic its AFL content material.
However given Front Bar is an leisure present, that leaves AFL followers fully starved of research and in-depth dialogue throughout the week.
The Herald Sun studies there’s a “theory” that Seven’s plan is to revive its devoted AFL programming when the brand new $4.5 billion broadcast rights deal, signed between Seven West Media and Foxtel, kicks in in 2025.
Channel 7 is slicing prices throughout the board amid an unsure financial and promoting local weather with the community additionally just lately pulling out of negotiations to retain rights to the Olympic Games.
Earlier this week, Nine Entertainment pulled off a $305m coup to nab the following 5 occasions, together with the 2032 Brisbane Games.
Nine made the official announcement after the inventory market closed on Wednesday after the community struck a take care of the International Olympic Committee.
Nine’s bid of $305m will finish Seven’s run of 4 Games since successful the rights from Nine in 2014 for a reported $200m deal.
Nine will broadcast the following 5 occasions, together with summer season Games in Paris 2024, LA in 2028, and Brisbane 2032, in addition to winter Games in Milan 2026 and the as-yet unannounced 2030 occasion.
Source: www.news.com.au
