Negotiations are currently underway for the next NRL broadcasting deal for 2028 and beyond.

Such things are of interest to me for any number of reasons. It's an indication of how the game is travelling at the top level, it's an indication of how the media landscape in Australia is travelling, and it's an indication of how much the broadcasters value the NRL as a key component of their content. The broadcasting deal also pays the NRL clubs, who pay the players, so it's pretty important to them too. For the fans, a key issue is how much rugby league will be available to watch via a free-to-air broadcast. Additionally, suggestions that the game might be split up across multiple streaming providers will frustrate many. There are plenty of rugby league fans who can't afford one paid streaming platform, let alone multiple platforms.

Whispers, rumours, and stuff that is entirely fabricated, will be suggested over the coming weeks. I'll keep this page updated with all that and more as negotiations progress.

The current broadcast deal

The broadcasting rights are jointly held by The Nine Network and the Foxtel Group. This deal is worth $2 billion across five years (or $400 million per year) and runs until the end of the 2027 season. Channel Nine have the exclusive free-to-air broadcasting rights, for which they pay $130 million per year.

The current deal was negotiated during a period of great uncertainty (COVID). The broadcasters and Peter V'Landys would disagree, but just about everyone else thinks that Nine and Foxtel picked up the rights cheaply.

What does V'Landys want?

The Chairman of the Australian Rugby League Commission hasn't been shy about what he wants out of the next NRL broadcast deal. He is seeking a five year deal from 2028 and beyond worth $4 billion. That is effectively a doubling of the previous deal to $800 million per year. Should it happen, that's the biggest broadcasting deal in Australian sports history. By contrast, the current AFL broadcasting deal is worth approximately $640 million per year through til 2032.

The NRL are hoping to have the next broadcasting deal finalised before CEO Andrew Abdo departs for Tennis Australia, so they must be close to an agreement.

Why they might get it?

• The NRL are introducing two new teams to the competition - the Bears and the Chiefs. More teams means more games and more content for a broadcaster.
• Broadcast ratings for the NRL continue to grow - more often than not NRL games have higher average audience figures than AFL games.
• The BVOD audience (i.e. streaming via a digital platform like 9Now) is growing and growing fast. The BVOD audience alone for game one of the State of Origin series this year was more than 1.5 million people.
• The growth of the NRLW is hard to ignore - the Womens State of Origin series and the NRLW grand final are watched by more people than the AFL mens games...and not by a small margin.
• Player behaviour has, but for the occasional flare-up, improved...a lot.
• In a fractured media landscape, live sport is one of the few things a broadcaster can depend on for an audience. Typically, the NRL delivers four of the five most watched sporting events in a calendar year (the grand final and the three State of Origin mens games).

Why they might not get it?

• While average tv audiences for the NRL are larger, AFL games go forever. The longer a game takes, the more opportunities a broadcaster has to sell advertising slots. AFL also has more breaks in play (every time a goal is scored). Once again, that's more opportunities to sell ads.
• Free-to-air audiences are declining (ask a young person how often they watch free-to-air television). While the NRL audience continues to grow, the broadcasters simply may not have enough funds to pay what the NRL wants.
• New gambling advertising legislation is set to commence in Australia in January 2027. Gambling companies are one of the biggest advertising spenders in the country, and a broadcaster will need to find alternatives to fill the gaps.

The likely bidders

• Nine Entertainment/Stan - everything is very much behind closed doors at the moment, but there's speculation that Nine Entertainment have already lodged a bid for everything. If true, and if they win the broadcasting rights, the Nine Network would continue to broadcast some NRL games on free-to-air, with the remaining games broadcast on their streaming platform Stan. It's understood (but not confirmed) that the offer is at least $4 billion. Additionally, if the NRL agreed to this deal, it would signal the end of the relationship between the NRL and Foxtel. That's a seismic shift in the sports broadcasting landscape in this country.
• Foxtel/Kayo Sports - Foxtel are well aware how important the NRL is to their success in this country. There are more than 4.5 million Foxtel subscribers in this country, but if they lost the broadcasting rights to the NRL a significant chunk of those subscribers would walk away...and Foxtel knows it. Foxtel was recently acquired by DAZN, a global sports streaming provider. They're valued at about $9.5 billion dollars and have deep pockets. They won't want to give up NRL broadcasting rights lightly. Nothing confirmed for now, but there are suggestions Foxtel have also lodged a bid for a similar sum (at least $4 billion). Should they win the broadcasting rights, they would need to on-sell at least some of the games to a free-to-air broadcaster (likely Seven or Ten). Note that anti-siphoning laws in Australia require that some events are required by legislation to be broadcast on free-to-air television. For rugby league, that includes NRL games, NRL finals, NRLW finals, International Tests involving the Kangaroos, and World Cup games.
• Seven Network/Ten Network - it seems less likely, but not out of the question, that either of the other free-to-air broadcasters could lodge a bid. The Seven network have dipped their toe into rugby league, securing the rights to the upcoming World Cup and introducing a rugby league panel show (The Agenda Setters...which is pretty darn good). Both networks have said they are interested, but can they afford it? What's more likely is that one of them signs an agreement with Foxtel as per above, or with Amazon as per below.
• Amazon/Prime - this one is the left-field bid, but it's a real possibility. Money is no issue, and they could potentially lodge a bid much like the Foxtel bid described above. What's more likely though is that they make a play for a segment of the pie. That segment could be Monday Night Football, which is likely to be introduced when more teams join the competition. It may also include the streaming rights to the State of Origin series and perhaps even the games in Las Vegas.