Jason Blake and Colm Begley of St KIlda collide with Grant Birchall of Hawthorn during the AFL Round 19 match between the Hawthorn Hawks and the St Kilda Saints at Aurora Stadium. Slattery Images
AFL stars and fans are declaring war on Channel 7. And for good reason. The network has confirmed it won’t be showing Friday night AFL matches live, as it’s committed instead to Better Homes and Gardens.
The continuation of delayed coverage has the AFL world fuming and has already sparked discussion over the AFL’s next media deal.
The outrage is justified.
An 11pm or over finish to the 8:30pm coverage is simply too late for kids, and the AFL should rightly be concerned by the early start to the antagonism toward Seven.
Channel 7’s track record with its sports coverage has been well documented here on The Roar, but you sense their continued failure to grasp the importance of live coverage is going to cost them big.
The fact that this debate is raging weeks before the season kicks-off suggests the AFL and Seven should be worried about a public backlash.
For AFL fans, there are alternatives to Channel 7 on Friday nights, including the AFL website’s Match Day live scoring (helps keep track of those crucial Dream Team points!), radio, Twitter updates and even live-streaming.
We no longer live in an age where we are solely dependant on television and radio, and their failure to grasp this is finally having a tangible impact.
As discussed during the Australian Open tennis, the huge drop in television ratings was in large part the result of Seven’s much-maligned delayed coverage.
As I wrote: “There’s no other indicator beyond television ratings to account for a decrease in the Australian Open’s popularity, with attendances at Melbourne Park increasing by approximately 80,000 over the past five years.
“The exodus of viewers for the Australian Open is more of a boycott of Channel 7 than a reflection of tennis’ standing in this country.”
While the AFL is obviously in a much stronger position to retain an audience compared to the Australian Open, they must be worried by the damage Seven’s delayed coverage will do to the ratings and popularity of Friday night footy.
Now Channel 9 has reportedly thrown its hat into the next round of AFL television rights, with live Friday night footy into Victoria, SA and Tasmania – and live into NSW and Queensland on their Go! Digital channel should the anti-siphoning laws be changed in time – sure to increase their bargaining position should Seven fail to budge.
Seven has a simple choice: listen to its audience (90 per cent voting on the Herald Sun website demanding live Friday night footy), show the fixtures live (can’t Better Homes and Gardens be shown on any other weeknight?) or risk a backlash akin to the one that impacted its Australian Open coverage.
If it doesn’t, it merely strengthens Nine’s bargaining power at the negotiating table with the AFL and weakens Seven’s relationship with the league.
The lesson here is a familiar one: with all the advances in television and sporting coverage, it says a lot about the backwardness of Australian television and the regulations that govern it that the biggest code in Australia is relegated to delayed coverage on what is the most popular night to watch it for its fans.
Edwin Maxwell
Guest
I thought Bias wasn't supposed to show but tonight's game between West Coast Eagles and Geelong reeked of it .Dennis Commeti being the worst of the lot .And the umpires were something else,no wonder the crowd wanted to hang them out to dry.Everytime the Cats did something it was well done or some such comment But the Eagles hardly got a mention.Great to see them beat the cats after such favortisum was shown to the Cats.And speaking of Commentators ,where on earth did 7 get those galahs for Saturday Night AFL.? THey spend most of their time commenting about the players while the game goes on by itself.Acouple weeks back I tirned the TV off in the third Quarter because all we were getting was a break down of what the players should be doing or could be doing while like I've said the game went on by itself............Ed
Warren
Guest
Maybe why Channel 7 will not commit to a live game on Friday night is the insistence of the AFL to have a season long draw. This could mean having team 14 v 15 playing each other in the last few rounds which would have no bearing on the finals and therefore effect TV audiences. The NRL set their time/dates every 6 weeks. I do not like it but it works for TV and therefore we have good games on Friday nights nearly every week. I think that if the AFL wants to a billion dollars for the next 5 years TV rights they are going to make some compromise here.
JamesP
Roar Rookie
Better Homes & Gardens does get better ratings on avergae than the football...but not by much (about 50k or so) You can guarantee that if the football is shown live on Friday night, it will be surpassing Better Homes & Gardens In fact, there is a school of thought that says the only reason BH&G gets good Friday ratings is that a big % of the viewers are waiting for the football to start! How about we move Better Himes & Garneds to another weeknight 7.30pm timeslot, and show live footy on Friday ngihts. Then we shall see which rates better...
Michael C
Roar Guru
The AFL needs - with in a couple of years, an extra game per week - the AFL needs to sell Foxtel a live to air Friday night game - - i.e. the AFL runs 2 Friday night matches - in different states - and Ch.7 or Ch.9 can decide whether to go live with their game or not. Those with Foxtel will be an hour entrenched in a game that'll finish before 10pm, whilst Ch.7 at 10 pm is still running the half time discussions as if it were live. btw - the best thing about the late showing/running of FNF is that if you go to the game, you can sometimes be home in time to watch the last qtr!!!!! so long as they don't chop off the song at the end of the coverage if your team won!!
John Hunt
Guest
I read somewhere that Seven makes $20 million extra a year by having Better Homes and Gardens on. The AFL Should give Seven a twilight Grand Final in exchange for Live FNF. Also, Nine were the same with AFL for 5 years and the NRL before the advent of the double header
Ken
Guest
That sounds like wishful thinking to me but here's hoping
Timmuh
Guest
Its simple. Sevens's prime time programming rates. If it didn't, it wouldn't stay in prime time. By delaying the footy they get an hour of BH&G ratings and then three hours of footy ratings. People won't stay up/home until 10:30 to watch BH&G, or any other program thay they run for the Friday if nights were swapped around, but will stay up until 11:30 for the end of the footy (or the start of the footy in most of NSW and Qld). Four hours of solid ratings against 3 hours of solid ratings. Four hours wins. Its not necessarily that BH&G outrates the AFL, but that the combination draws more viewers AFL alone.
rugbyfuture
Roar Guru
most willing to play, not support... (typical i think of rugby)
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
You play Rugby RF? Thus you have a whole lot of mates with Foxtel that like Rugby.
rugbyfuture
Roar Guru
still, an unnecessary cost imposed on a budget, i am cheap, but still, problem with your suggestion DoW is none of my friends are interrested in rugby... :-P
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
It's pretty cheap RF for entertainment. Your young though, I am sure once your earning a bit of cash, it will put it all in perspective. In the meantime you just find out what mates have foxtel and find an excuse to get over there (ok, I do this quite often instead of going to the pub, but it's all good!)
rugbyfuture
Roar Guru
thats still more than $700 a year, alot for "entertainment". Are you sure you don't work in the fox sales department?
Justin
Guest
RF - Its less than $60. Its great for me being in Melbourne. See all the RU, plenty of AFL, especially Sundays with no RU on. It has all the sports I love and play - cricket, domestic and International, golf, EPL, horse racing etc etc. For under $60 thats not too bad IMO although it could be lower, plus the wife gets to watch plenty of sitcoms!
Justin
Guest
All fair points Dogs
rugbyfuture
Roar Guru
foxtel is way to epensive to be worth it, its $88 a month and for half of that month no rugby or league is on half the time.
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
Yeah, but it's an excuse to get out of the house. With Foxtel you end up camping yourself on the lounge too much. Sure it's nice, but honestly it's how I put on weight, and it's much harder to get it off, though I do try hard (Well my Personal Trainer makes sure of that)
Justin
Guest
Dogs - Do you have a few pots at the pub when you watch the Rugby? Reason I ask is you could probably get Fox and save money by not having a few beers each week at said pub. The cost of Fox with sport is basically 4-5 beers a week...
AndyRoo
Roar Guru
They were simpler times though, no digital channels, broadband internet and sports tonight was on at something like 10:30pm. Now days week old highlights sounds ridiculous
Dogs Of War
Roar Guru
I did. That's why I remember it. I don't have foxtel, and thus have to rely on programs like that to keep in touch. These days it's a visit to the pub, but thats no good if they play in SA.
Justin
Guest
With new digi channels a show like that could be put on 7.2 on the Monday or Tuesday night like Fox do with Extra Time. Having it on over a week later? No wonder no one watched it, who wants to see matches that old? A team may have played again in between!