Foxtel and FFA come to an agreement over A-League and W-League
After Foxtel abandoned a $60m six-year deal with the Football Federation Australia (FFA), a new deal has been struck which will secure the broadcaster with the rights for the Hyundai A-League until 2021 and the Westfield W-League.
The new agreement means the Hyundai A-League 2019/20 will resume on July 16, but reports say the deal has seen the FFA accept up to a 50% cut on the fees it will receive for the sport.
OFFICIAL
Football to continue on Fox Sports through to July 2021.
— Football Australia (@FootballAUS) June 19, 2020
The new deal is understood to be worth $32m per year for the FFA.
Fox Sports will now air the final four FIFA World Cup 2022 Asian Qualifiers as well as the Socceroos and Matildas friendly international matches. The channel will also air the full A-League and W-League 2020/21 seasons.
FFA CEO James Johnson thanked Foxtel and Fox Sports for collaborating with the body on the deal.
“I would like to thank Foxtel CEO Patrick Delany and head of Fox Sports Peter Campbell for their continued support for Australian football,” Johnson said.
“The pandemic has created uncertainty and accelerated disruption to the sports media sector and to football here in Australia and abroad – this new agreement adjusts to this new reality, secures the immediate future of football in Australia and provides flexibility for FFA to lay a foundation to transition into a new world for Australian professional football.
“The deal will see the professional game – for women and men – reactivated, and ensures that football is at the heart of all our thinking in the future.
“It will also provide immediate certainty for clubs, players, coaches, officials and, most importantly, fans, for the remainder of the current Hyundai A-League season, as well as the next.
Free-to-air (FTA) broadcast partner ABC will continue to broadcast one A-League and Westfield W-League match per week through to the end of July 2021, along with FFA-controlled Socceroos and Westfield Matildas matches.
The new agreement will no longer see the FFA Cup broadcast on Fox Sports and FFA will consider new broadcast arrangements for the event.
Peter Campbell, head of Fox Sports said: “We want to be there for football fans and we are pleased to have a new agreement that supports the completion of the 2019/20 A-League season and provides certainty for FFA, clubs, players and supporters to begin planning and to get excited for next season.
“This new deal also provides us with the opportunity to work with FFA over the next year as they reset and reenergize the professional game in Australia and explore the best possible range of future broadcast options for the game.
“Football has been through a challenging period and we are excited to have the W-League, Socceroos, Matildas back on Fox Sports and for the A-League restart on 16 July, every game live and ad-break free during play.”
topics
A-Leauge
ABC
FFA
Fox Sports
Foxtel
Hyundai A-League
James Johnson
Patrick Delany
Peter Campbell
soccer
W-League
