Updated ,first published
Nine and Foxtel are on the cusp of retaining the rights to air the NRL, keeping the game with its current broadcasters in what could be the most expensive rights deal for an Australian sporting code in history.
The pending deal, which is set to run until 2034, could make the sport more valuable than the AFL, a longstanding goal of the Australian Rugby League Commission chairman Peter Vโlandys.
Sources familiar with the matter said the seven-year $5 billion deal had not been signed yet, but comprised $150 million annually from Nine, owner of this masthead, for the free-to-air TV rights, with Foxtel paying $520 million annually for the pay TV component.
Nine, the owner of this masthead, Foxtel, and the NRL declined to comment.
While the deal is yet to be signed, it stands to amount to about $700 million a year including the rights to broadcast the game in New Zealand.
That would eclipse the AFLโs record $4.5 billion deal over seven years which the rival sport signed in 2022 and which runs from 2025 to 2031.
It will also retain the long-time status quo in NRL coverage despite separate bids from Nine and Foxtel for all games and interest from Amazon Prime Video in securing up to two matches a week.
It is expected that Nine will continue to show the State of Origin series and NRL grand final exclusively under the new deal, which will begin in 2028, when the competition will have expanded from 17 to 19 teams.
Late-stage negotiations for the deal came during a busy week for Nine, which was simultaneously in exit talks with one of its biggest personalities, Karl Stefanovic.
Nine currently broadcasts three NRL games a week while Foxtel puts to air every match of the round, including keeping five of them to itself.
There will be an additional match per round in the competition from next year when the Perth Bears become the 18th team while the Australian government backed PNG Chiefs will join the NRL in 2028.
A 20th franchise, most likely based in Christchurch or in the south-west corridor of Brisbane, could also be added to the league during the next rights cycle, bringing the number of games per round to 10.
More to come.
The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion. Sign up to get it every weekday morning.
Kishor Napier-Raman is a senior business writer for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Previously he worked as a CBD columnist and reporter in the federal parliamentary press gallery.Connect via X or email.
Chris Barrett is a senior sports reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald. He is a former South-East Asia correspondent for the Herald and The Age.Connect via X or email.From our partners
About the Author
