Aussie cricket in crisis as Seven pulls out of broadcast deal

Cricket could begin the summer without a free-to-air TV broadcaster after Channel 7 opted to terminate its contract with the game.

Channel 7’s relationship with cricket is on the rocks.

Channel 7 has reportedly started proceedings to pull out of its deal with Cricket Australia.

The network signed a $450 million deal in 2018 as it pinched the free-to-air broadcast rights from Channel 9 after a 40-year stranglehold but has signalled it wants out of its contract.

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The Daily Telegraph exclusively revealed Seven notified CA this week of its intentions to cancel the remainder of its deal, which has four more years left to run.

The bombshell development comes after Seven CEO James Warburton launched a stunning attack on CA last month, calling it the “most incompetent administration I’ve ever worked with”.

The Sydney Morning Herald reports Seven may not make its next $25m broadcast payment, due on Tuesday. A CA spokesman told the publication it “remains in ongoing discussions with the Seven Network about delivering a compelling summer of cricket” and “is committed to fulfilling its contractual obligations to all its partners this season”.

At the crux of Seven’s gripes is the upcoming Big Bash League (BBL) — previously broadcast by Channel 10 — which it argues will be devalued because of the lack of availability of international stars.

“We are forced to consider all our options including terminating the contract, and we have put them on notice,” Warburton told The Daily Telegraph in August.

“This is not an acceptable product, and we will not support the season. Cricket Australia have an obligation to deliver a competition of no lesser standard than the past.

“‘Don’t worry,’ they say. ‘We will deliver a full BBL season. We’ve got good news. We can one hundred per cent tell you who can’t play because we know they are in a hub we’ve created for our international white ball games. The only problem is we actually have no idea who will play the BBL’.

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Steve Smith may not be seen on Seven this summer.

“How stupid to schedule international cricket against the BBL and drain the resources of a competition already under pressure. It’s a joke, and it rips off the fans.

“We paid a huge price and were promised the world. There is an obligation to deliver the best quality to the broadcasters.

“It’s the most incompetent administration I’ve ever worked with, with no appointed full time chief executive officer at a time when the sport needs strong leadership to steer through these extraordinary times.”

Reacting to the news of Seven’s intent to terminate its deal, former Australian spinner Brad Hogg tweeted: “How can this happen? Santa Clause delivered the perfect present for CA in 2011. The Big Bash was the product for the Christmas holidays. Hope this gets rectified ASAP.”

Veteran cricket reporter Robert Craddock said it was a “big story” with “huge ramifications”.

If Seven does pull out, cricket could be left without a free-to-air broadcast partner for this summer, which features a blockbuster Test series against India.