More games on delay? Sources said AFL is considering giving Foxtel more live matches and delaying free-to-air games by up to two hours.Credit:Paul Kane/Getty Images
This season,six matches aired on Seven on delay in Western Australia and South Australia,but all matches in Queensland,NSW and Victoria are broadcast live on Seven. Under plans being considered by the AFL,more matches would air on free-to-air each week (four) - but two of these games would be delayed by up to two hours in markets outside Victoria.
This means NSW,Queensland,South Australia and Western Australia could face a 30 per cent to 40 per cent reduction in live matches on free-to-air television,a move that would be fiercely opposed by clubs and state governments who want local games to be broadcast exclusively and free-to-air.
The AFL has what the industry describes as a “flip-flop clause” in its contract,which expires in 2024. It is a clause unique to the AFL and gives Seven the ability to broadcast a local team on free-to-air television in its respective state. Any decision to delay matches would effectively defeat the purpose of the clause.
Seven West Media and Foxtel both declined to comment.
The proposal comes after Foxtellast week backed down and let Seven stream the games it broadcasts on free-to-air on its online service,7Plus. Foxtel and Seven,the AFL’s incumbent broadcast partners,have been at loggerheads for weeks over key aspects of the league’s next deal,including exclusivity and scheduling of matches. But both parties,which are negotiating separately with the AFL for legal reasons,are hopeful the renewal of their deals will be secured imminently.
The AFL is in final stages of talks over its next broadcast rights deal. Media sources last week said the league was still in discussions with other bidders including Nine Entertainment Co (owner of this masthead) and Paramount,the owner of Network Ten.