By Andrew Warshaw
November 19 – Buoyed by the hiring of Italian icon Alessandro Del Piero, the Australian Football Federation (FFA) have announced a new broadcast deal providing unprecedented coverage of both the national team and the Hyundai A-League.
The four-year agreement with Fox Sports, Foxtel and SBS – reported to be worth 39 million Australian dollars (£25m/$41m/€32m) per year – will provide fans with comprehensive coverage on multiple platforms, including subscription TV, free-to-air TV, internet and digital devices.
FFA Chairman Frank Lowy, who led Australia’s 2022 World Cup bid when he tried his best to use the growing interest towards football as part of his campaign to bring the tournament to as yet unchartered territory, hailed the new arrangement as the most valuable and important commercial deal in the sport’s history in his country.
Reports in Australia said Fox Sports would pay close to $32m (£20m/€25m) a year for the rights to televise all five A-League matches every week as well as Australia’s World Cup qualifiers, while SBS would contribute $7m (£4m/€5m).
For the first time in the A-League, one game will be shown live on free-to-air television.
The new deal easily eclipses the existing broadcast deal, in which FFA was paid $19m (£12/€15m) a year over seven years.
The luring of Del Piero (pictured below) to Sydney FC and the knock-on effect from the signing of former England international Emile Heskey by Newcastle Jets and former Japanese star Shinji Ono to Western Sydney appears to have weighed heavily in the negotiations between FFA and the broadcasters.
Del Piero, whose signing with Sydney FC made footballing headlines around the world, has been largely responsible for a massive increase in crowd attendances and television ratings for the A-League.
“FFA has been building the foundations for sustained growth with the success of the Qantas Socceroos, the consolidation of the Hyundai A-League and the popularity of our beautiful game with 1.7 million participants at the grassroots,” said Lowy.
“The new broadcast arrangements will give FFA an unprecedented opportunity to implement its strategic plans for Australian football.
“There’s never been any doubt that the game has a bright future in this nation, but today the football family can take comfort from the huge vote of confidence from our broadcast partners.”
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