When AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan stumbled out of Foxtel’s offices in Melbourne’s Collins Street about 5am on Tuesday, he was hungry for a souvlaki.
The man had earned it. His team had just signed the final contracts – by putting pen to paper on any available surface in the lobby – for a jaw-dropping $4.5 billion to give Seven and Foxtel the broadcast rights to secure the future of the game beyond 2030.
Patrick DurkinBOSS Deputy editorPatrick Durkin is Melbourne bureau chief and BOSS deputy editor. He writes on news, business and leadership. Connect with Patrick on Twitter. Email Patrick at pdurkin@afr.com
Mark Di StefanoColumnistMark Di Stefano is Rear Window columnist, based in the Sydney newsroom. He previously worked at BuzzFeed, the Financial Times and The Information before joining the Financial Review as a media and tech correspondent. Connect with Mark on Twitter. Email Mark at mark.distefano@afr.com
