Australia’s National Rugby League signs A$1billion deal with FOX

Australian NRL signed A$1bn deal with FOX in 5 year television broadcast deal on Tuesday. The deal was reached between the NRL’s free-to-air Nine Network and Australian pay-TV company Foxtel worth A$925m which goes directly to the sport and another A$100m in advertising revenue.

NRL chairman, John Grant, is simply ecstatic over the decision and testifies it will be a huge boon for the league and sport in general. Grant said in a statement, “The cash that comes from the agreement, used wisely, will provide the funding base for sustainably growing our game from the grass-roots to the elite levels.”

The State of Origin, one of the league’s most popular events, received nearly 2 million viewers for each of the three games in the series broadcast on the Australian Nine Network. This deal is the biggest of its kind and will undoubtedly give the sport a stronger foothold than it previously held.

Foxtel is an Australian broadcast company by three telecommunications conglomerates. 25% of Foxtel is owned by News Corp., 50% by Telstra Corp., and 25% by Consolidated Media Holdings. News Corp. has been making efforts to acquire CMH in a $1.92bn deal.

This television deal came as a relief to Nine Network due to the company’s standing debt of nearly A$3bn.

The NRL stands to gain even more in broadcasting deals as negotiations are currently underway with broadcasting companies in New Zealand along with mobile platforms and website locations.