True, but I consider Thursday and Friday nights to be the premium timeslots in the round, as it would allow teams to showcase their brand of footy in the only match of those nights (in most, if not all, rounds anyway).
There were reasons why Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs (among other teams) were kept off Broadway for the 2013-15 seasons (though Melbourne did play an away game against Richmond on a Friday night in 2015), it was because they languished towards the bottom of the ladder during that period.
Another thought - if the Lions-Cats match is postponed as expected, I wonder what Seven would fill the timeslot with.
I think they could re-air last yearâs prelim between the two same sides, which was a thriller up until the final minutes. Much like how Seven aired classic matches on Saturday nights during the season shutdown in 2020.
Is it true that viewers in Western Australia and South Australia will still get to see at least one Saturday game (Fox-produced) not featuring Eagles/Dockers and Crows/Power occasionally? I had just had a look at the Broadcast schedule outside Victoria/Tasmania
I donât think 7 would be happy with losing the Lions v Cats match. The overlap with the Hawks v Giants shouldnât be a problem as there are multiple rounds with 2 Saturday night games.
Surely 7 can ask the AFL to let them broadcast the Lions vs Cats as an special exemption from the Fox super Saturday exclusivity given itâs a postponed rescheduled game
I think as part of the broadcasting deal, any marquee matches that fall on a Saturday (such as Anzac Day) would still be shown on Seven.
Next season (2026) will be the first such instance of this happening, and it wonât happen again during the current broadcasting rights period (after 2026, Anzac Day wonât fall on a Saturday again until 2037).
Could an option be that Seven do the Sunday Twilight match thatâs in Perth that round to make up the number of FTA games? Time difference mean it would air at 6pm, likely on 7Mate nationally
Yes
Designated marquee matches outside these time slots, such as Anzac Day, Easter Monday and Kingâs Birthday, will also be shown on Seven and 7plus as part of the new deal.
Sounds like the lawyers didnât include a clause for broadcasting of postponed/rescheduled games. It will be disappointing if the Lions-Cats isnât shown on FTA as a result of the rescheduling but it is what it is. Although if the AFL wanted to they could just designate it a âmarquee matchâ which it was originally going to be anyway, meaning Seven could broadcast it whenever.
They could also maybe negotiate a compromise where Seven can air another Sunday game, which would allow the same amount of games on FTA while Fox still have exclusive Saturdayâs
I remember in the (redrawn) 2020 AFL season, Seven was due to cover a match between Essendon and Melbourne in round three, only for it to be postponed due to a positive COVID-19 case within the Essendon team.
When it was eventually rescheduled to round 18, by which point nearly the whole competition had relocated to south-east Queensland, Fox Footy covered the match.
