Footy Fans Shafted Again

[kaiserchief13]

Unfortunately like everything else- netflix stan paramount etc you have to pay to watch. For people working this is easy. If its not then re prioritise. For people not working who can't afford it its unfortunate but its the same as not being able to pay for every other streaming service. You want entertainment? In 2025 you have to pay for it

 

[bzparkes]

AFL is a not for profit.

It owes everything to its fans.

I think with the amount of gambling advertising and money poured into it from corporations, we can safely assume that is no longer the case.

 

[kranky al]

I think with the amount of gambling advertising and money poured into it from corporations, we can safely assume that is no longer the case.

Riiiggghhht so they don’t need a few bucks more

 

[Gavin Excell]

The thing is for a lot of people, the reality of no on the TV Saturdays will have yet to be realised

 

[Saint Kidding]

Stupid by the AFL.
If they want to grow the game it needs to have a basic level that is accessible to all. Not everyone starts out a footy tragic. Step 1 is watch some footy and think "gee, I quite enjoyed that, I think I'll watch some more". But no one is forking out for Foxtel or Kayo at that early point. They are not attending matches or buying memberships either. Not keeping the game accessible to casual viewers will cost them in the long term.

 

[Bjo187]

Stupid by the AFL.
If they want to grow the game it needs to have a basic level that is accessible to all. Not everyone starts out a footy tragic. Step 1 is watch some footy and think "gee, I quite enjoyed that, I think I'll watch some more". But no one is forking out for Foxtel or Kayo at that early point. They are not attending matches or buying memberships either. Not keeping the game accessible to casual viewers will cost them in the long term.

I agree with this they also had an advantage on Saturdays in the northern states with no competition that's now gone. Well they did if 7 actually promoted it up there and put it on the main channel. I think the perfect balance is 4 games on fta. I hope that happens in the next tv deal when we likely go to 20 teams and 10 games, as a 7 and 3 split would be poor form.

 

[Clark G]

I agree with this they also had an advantage on Saturdays in the northern states with no competition that's now gone. Well they did if 7 actually promoted it up there and put it on the main channel. I think the perfect balance is 4 games on fta. I hope that happens in the next tv deal when we likely go to 20 teams and 10 games, as a 7 and 3 split would be poor form.

That may well depend on where an extra game would go. If it is to be a second Friday night game played at the same time as the other Friday night game, then it would likely be on pay TV.

 

[NYRB]

While I get your frustration, in the AFL defence, they have long term gone out of their way to make sure matches are on FTA. Anti-siphoning laws only cover the finals.

If the AFL wanted to & they probably get more money doing so, then every in season game could be behind a paywall. Most major domestic competitions around the world are & Australia is the outlier.

There is also a commercial reality for channel 7, that reality is why they were so keen on Thursday night, Saturday day doesn’t rate. It’s the same production costs as Thursday, the return on a next to nothing broadcast of a 1980’s midday movie, in many cases makes more financial sense for them. So the amount they are willing to pay to secure that match is far lower than PayTV.

We also complain about the price of food at stadiums. But go overseas, by comparison it’s ridiculous cheap, not to mention the cost of tickets to games here is also unbelievable cheap. Go to a NFL game in season in the US & you are remortgaging your house just for the ticket.

Reality is FTA is dying, just look at the ratings. Sport is the one thing they are hanging onto, but subscription sport services such as Kayo are only increasing their penetration. This is going to be turned around. Within the next couple of decades, it’s realistic that FTA TV will be a thing of the past

It’s fun to kick the AFL, but commercial reality & trends say that they can only do so much

There is also a real danger that the sport could be a divide between two classes, the working class and the rich. To me AFL used to be a sport where the working class and the rich were together. But maybe we are slowly seeing a divide ? I have Kayo but it could become like cricket or rugby union where only the people with money can afford to watch.

 

[Bjo187]

I did this post in the tv ratings thread but it might fit better here.

I was thinking, why wouldn't 7 do a 'before the game' style light hearted show on the Saturday after the news, similar to what ch10 use to do. It would give them some Saturday content, instead of doing shows randomly on 7 plus on a Sunday night, which nobody knows are on.

Give a wrap of the games up to that point and discuss the days games with a bit of comedy. I think it would be popular with the crowd that are missing Saturday footy content on fta. I'd pretty much copy before the game from back in the ch10 days and some of their panel members, as it was pretty popular from memory.

On another note the next tv deal I'd like to see across 10 games that 4 are on free to air each weekend. Split the fta games 2 and 2 across two fta broadcasters.

They were the best days for exposure and I feel as though the afl would do well having ch9 and all their papers pushing the game along with ch7.

I think a 4 and 6 balance of fta to pay is pretty good, but the AFL will no doubt see the $$ with giving that 10th game to pay tv.

There is a balance between taking the extra cash, but not winning enough new viewers through your product being freely available. Something they're right on the cusp of now imo.

 

[benbrown]

I had someone complain to me about it at the footy on the weekend and how he couldn’t afford it,next min his wife’s back with beers and about $50 worth of food,im happy to pay for Kayo but wouldn’t waste a cent on rip off food and plastic cup beer

 

[Cam Payne]

Glad I had Kayo and went to the shops at half time. Can you imagine waiting two hours to watch ****ing Freo play? **** that.

 

[Toump Ass]

You want entertainment? In 2025 you have to pay for it

The AFL competition relies on state and federal funding to exist. We already pay for it with our taxes.

 

[kranky al]

Anyone reading this thread struggling financially. HMU for some cheap options that get you around this situation

 

[Elroo]

One benefit of the AFL moving more of the games to pay tv is I'm now watching more NRL on free to air in Victoria than AFL.

 

[Freomaniac]

Because cash is the backbone of the AFL.

In reality it is all they care about.

All the fluff they put out their is noise used covering up the corporate greed that dominates their decisions.

True

 

[Kappa]

Then 7 need to offer more for the rights.

AFL's a business and they sell to the highest bidder.

Sucks for those of us who grew up watching FTA footy on a Saturday night but that's never going to change until a FTA channel offers more for the rights than Fox.

Sometimes going after short term money is worse for long term money.

 

[parano1a]

VFL on 7mate starts this weekend. Every Saturday night at 7pm

 

[Sainter3and7]

When I first heard/read about this, I thought they were saying no footy on free to air TV until after Round 10. That's why I was saying Id have to give footy a miss then, cause it doesn't feel right not to be able to see footy till half way through the season. But there are some games on free TV, so I've felt far less disconnected than what I thought I would be. It was nowhere near as bad as I thought!

 

[troybe]

So what happens next year when Anzac Day falls on Saturday, does Foxtel broadcast the game exclusively or will a deal be made

 

[LionsOrDieTrion]

Who is still watching FTA in 2025? Haven’t had an aerial plugged into my TV in at least 10 years.

 

[Aura]

Kayo will be $100 a month with time

 

[Freomaniac]

The AFL competition relies on state and federal funding to exist. We already pay for it with our taxes.

No you silly person. The AFL heavily relies on money via Foxtel or Fox Sports.

And Foxtel makes their money on regular simpletons like you and me to pay subscriptions to watch AFL.

I remember back in the day that Foxtel offered the basic channels and sport for $50 a month. It's probably now $80 to $100 a month for basic cable and sport.

 

[Freomaniac]

For the record.... Let Foxtel have all the Saturday games exclusive to them.

I enjoyed watching a game on the SANFL between Norwood VS North Adelaide on a live Saturday night game on channel 7.

I don't mind the SANFL showing one free to air game on Saturday or Sunday arvo.

Wa has the WAFL, Victoria has the VFL.

 

[Cleavy]

So what happens next year when Anzac Day falls on Saturday, does Foxtel broadcast the game exclusively or will a deal be made

Anzac Day (and some other major games) are exempt, so it will be on FTA.

"The exception to Super Saturday is for marquee games, such as Collingwood v Essendon on Anzac Day. If a marquee game falls on a Saturday under the new deal, it will be broadcast on Seven and 7plus as well as Fox Footy."

 

[Cleavy]

VFL on 7mate starts this weekend. Every Saturday night at 7pm

such a high priority for ch7 after making a big deal about it. can't even put it on the main channel.