AFL footy frenzy leads to huge rating numbers for Foxtel
For the first time AFL games were able to be spread out and not overlap during key timeslots. What impact did this have on the ratings? Plus, could the league look at making this a permanent change?
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The AFL’s Footy Frenzy was an extraordinary television success, with Fox Footy recording a 59 per cent ratings jump for Rounds 9-12 compared to last year’s figures.
And total audiences for Foxtel’s AFL product are up 34 per cent for the season given massive audiences on Kayo, Foxtel Now and Foxtel GO.
In total Fox Footy-produced matches are up 44 per cent so far this season, with Richmond and Collingwood involved in the four biggest-rating matches of the season.
The condensed schedule meant Fox Footy was able to show its product with almost no games played in overlapping timeslots, with AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan saying recently many of 2020’s success stories would carry over into 2021.
The league is set to trumpet its ratings success in coming days with the league also thrilled with audiences in northern markets.
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Average audiences for Fox Footy are up 10 per cent across the season and audiences for Foxtel Now, Foxtel GO and Kayo audiences are up over 200%.
The Round 12 Melbourne-Collingwood game drew a total audience of 389,000 viewers, made up of 268,000 viewers on Fox Footy and 121,000 on Foxtel Go, Foxtel Now and Kayo.
The Round 11 Port Adelaide-Richmond game drew a total audience of 414,000 viewers, with 273,000 on Fox Footy and 141,000 on Foxtel Go, Foxtel Now and Kayo.
It was a similar ratings bonanza for the Seven Network, with its average footy audience since the Round 2 restart up 13.7% nationally year on year and 17 per cent in metro areas.
Seven said its coverage across rounds 9 to 12 reached 4.7 million people across Australia and 3.69 million in metro markets.
During the festival of footy, all markets were up on the same time last year.
Although Melbourne was up a stunning 37.9 per cent, and in Brisbane it was up 24.6 per cent
Friday nights were up 23 per cent nationally and 27.7 per cent in metro markets.
It was even bigger on Saturday night, up 35.4 per cent nationally and 35 per cent in metro markets.
Foxtel Sports Executive Director Steve Crawley said the ratings success showed the appetite for AFL football was inexhaustible.
“What a ripper result for the game,” he said.
“I feel sorry for anyone who says there could be too much footy. I know it’s been tough for the players but I love summer and the BBL and I really enjoyed going home knowing I was going to be able to watch a game of footy.
“I have spent this time in Sydney and I know a lot of people who don’t normally watch AFL have been watching it and I don’t think it will stop, we will get some new audience out of it.
“Kayo has been a screaming success. We have seen a lot more of Garry Lyon, Nick Riewoldt and Jon Brown together and I really like them as a combination and I am a massive wrap on Kath Loughnan’s work and she’s really stepped up on AFL Tonight and Saturday nights but the biggest stars have been the players and coaches.”
WHAT WILL FOOTY LOOK LIKE IN 2021?
- Chris Cavanagh and Reece Homfray
A delayed start to next season looks inevitable, with expectations that clubs will not resume pre-season training until January.
While the AFL’s focus has been on finishing this season rather than what 2021 holds, there has been speculation that next season could start as late as May or June.
Clubs have not received any official word from the AFL on such a move, but some spoken to by News Corp do expect timelines to be pushed back as this season extends well into October.
Under the league’s Collective Bargaining Agreement with its players, teams who do not reach the second-week of finals are unable to return to pre-season training until at least mid-November during a normal year.
Teams who take part in weeks 2-4 of finals can return to training on December 1 at the earliest.
With this season to finish three weeks later than originally scheduled and clubs also having a mandatory three-week shutdown period over Christmas, it is expected that pre-season would not resume until January.
Victorian clubs are also mindful that a delayed start to the season could increase the chances of significant numbers of fans returning to the football from Round 1.
Clubs fear that membership sales could take a hit if the season was to start in March or April with no prospect of fans returning to games during the early stages of the year.
As reported by News Corp last week, clubs have begun contemplating and planning for another season with restricted crowd numbers or – in Victoria’s case – no crowds in 2021.
The AFL has stated that all options are on the table as far as next season is concerned.
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