Fox Footy

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I think I’d have kept Lyon on the couch and put Jack in at 360

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Super Saturday Live, available on Kayo Sports and Foxtel, will be the only way to watch games live on Saturday until and including Round 8 in South Australia and Western Australia, until and including Round 10 in New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT, and the only way to watch games live on Saturday in Victoria, Tasmania and the NT all season.

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I agree, Jack is more familiar to the 360 audience, and Garry has better chemistry with the Couch crew.

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Fox definitely has the advantage with Friday night with Huddo & Whateley calling those matches.

If I’m Fox I would also have them call Thursdays too as that would definitely have a big impact on people watching on 7 as people would watch more Fox since they have better commentary Thursday (if it’s Huddo & Whateley) & Friday + Exclusive Saturday.

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I doubt they’ll have Gerard & Huddo do both Thursday & Friday, otherwise that would have been the announcement.
Wouldn’t be Dwayne Russell & Matt Hill for Thursdays, could it???

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I don’t think they are if they did do both then they have a clear advantage for both prime time matches each round over 7 since no one can compete with this duo. But I’m pretty sure SEN & 3AW would be wanting them to call at least 1 prime time match

Yep - will be interesting to see what combinations they will use, and how they work around key talent’s radio commitments (if they want to do both).

From John Ralph’s Twitter this arvo

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It’s been reported that Huddo will call for 3AW on Thursday nights, whilst Gerard will call for SEN on Thursday nights and Saturdays.

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Isn’t Fox’s Saturday live exclusivity only for the first eight rounds outside Victoria?

Not anymore, it seems.
Same deal with Fox exclusivity in Vic; was suppose to last until Round 15, now it’s the whole H&A season.

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That bit makes sense though due to the expansion of Thursday Night Football and therefore no need for Seven to get a bunch of Saturday night games at the end of the season.

What Fox is suggesting about how their Saturday live exclusivity will operate goes completely against what we know about the terms of the rights deal.

Either Fox is front loading and has to make up for it later, or they’ve come to a mutually beneficial arrangement with 7 since the deal was signed back in '22.
I’d say the latter; 7 gets it’s 80-81 H&A matches a year and gets more games in it’s prefered timeslot (TNF).

I think it’s just the extra couple of rounds in NSW so each team has 3 of their Saturday games on delay.

Example the Swans have their 3rd Saturday game until round 9 and the Giants Round 10 (assuming gather round is not included as a “special” round)

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Not every team impacted will hit 3 games though. For example, Freo & West Coast only have 2 Saturday games up to R8 (including Gather Round) while Adelaide & Port actually go over with 4 games each.

There are a lot of questions which need to be answered about how Fox’s Saturday rights are meant to operate.

I get the no Saturday games in Vic for the whole season because of 23 Thursdays.

But the local matches live on 7 seems to be changed from delayed (3 per team) until R9 for all non vic teams to now some only until R9, some until R11, some (like the suns) with 4-5 delayed games etc. that part is not sticking to original terms said out & there isn’t a straight swap or anything

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Media release in full from Foxtel

‘Super Saturday Live’ to change the game for Fox Footy on Kayo Sports in 2025

With the release of 2025 Toyota AFL Premiership fixture, it has officially been confirmed that Fox Footy – available on Kayo Sports and Foxtel – will be the ONLY place to watch AFL exclusively live on Saturday’s nationally for the first eight rounds of the home and away season (nine weeks, inclusive of Opening Round).

In localised markets such as Victoria, Fox Footy’s exclusively live coverage on Saturdays will extend for the entirety of the home and away season – ushering in a new era as part of the landmark AFL rights deal - with bespoke commentary, graphics and 4K available for every game – for the first time on both Kayo Sports and Foxtel.

‘Super Saturday LIVE’ is a new offering for subscribers that will see live coverage on Fox Footy from midday to midnight every week including more analysis, programming and every blockbuster match, with no ad-breaks during play.

See below for a full breakdown of the number of weeks that have exclusively LIVE Super Saturday coverage per market (numbers are inclusive of Opening Round).

VIC NSW QLD TAS SA WA NT ACT
25 11 11 25 9 9 25 11

Off the back of recent signings Shaun Burgoyne and Tom Hawkins, Fox Footy has also announced the following talent changes for season 2025:

  • Leigh Matthews will join the Fox Footy family to provide expert opinion.
  • Garry Lyon to join Gerard Whateley as co-host of Fox Footy’s award-winning show ‘AFL 360’.
  • Jack Riewoldt moves into the hosting role every Monday for ‘On the Couch’ alongside Jonathan Brown and Nathan Buckley.
  • Respected journalist and broadcaster Gerard Whateley will call Friday matches for Fox Footy, partnering with commentator Anthony Hudson.

Managing Director Fox Sports Steve Crawley said: “There is no bigger name in the AFL than Leigh Matthews. His playing and coaching career is unrivalled and when he talks – everyone pays attention. We’re honoured he’s chosen us to share his insights. We just hope Jason is comfortable having another ‘legend’ on the team.

We’re expecting new subscribers in ‘25 and we can’t wait for them to enjoy the combination of Huddo and Gerard calling Friday nights. These two aren’t strangers to calling together, but a new combo for Fox Footy, we know our audiences will value their clear, accurate, and descriptive call.

We’re proud of our bench, we’re thrilled Garry will be joining Gerard on AFL 360 and we can’t wait to have Jack joining our great Couch team as our new host. It’s been a busy off-season and we’re not done yet.”

During the 2025 AFL season, Fox Footy commentary and production will be available on all games for the first time along with no ad-breaks during play and every match will also be made available in 4K on Kayo Sports and Foxtel.

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Interesting poll in The Age asking “Which Friday night footy broadcast will you be watching”, 83% Fox Footy / Kayo, 12% Channel 7 with 5% listening on radio. Pleased to see the low opinion of Taylor and Brayshaw!

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