Foxtel Group CEO Patrick Delany has confirmed the broadcaster will pursue the next NRL rights cycle, with the negotiations for the post-2027 NRL seasons set to begin over the coming weeks and months.
Speaking to B&T yesterday, Delany made it clear that the Foxtel Group intends to be at the table and intends to compete. Foxtel, he said, “loves the NRL” and is preparing a formal bid to renew the rights.
Delany’s comments come at a pivotal moment for Australia’s sports broadcasting landscape, with every major network expected to explore a position in the rights race and streaming platforms potentially preparing to escalate their bids. For Foxtel, the long-running relationship with the NRL, and the work it has done to take the game to international audiences, is a central part of its case for renewal.
“We have been the NRL’s paid TV partner for over 20 years,” he said. “As a partner of the NRL, we have helped shape the current voice, look and feel. We’ve certainly pushed the NRL globally. We run Watch NRL for overseas viewers. We made sure that the NRL was on Fox in America. We made sure it was on Sky in the UK. So we’re ready to renew.”
Nine and Foxtel signed a reported $1.7 billion deal with the code back in 2020. With the code in a much stronger position than it was back in the haze of a global pandemic, with a reported revenue of $744 million in 2024, it is expected that the final price tag will be significantly higher.
To put that number into perspective, in 2022, Seven Network, Foxtel and Telstra signed a huge deal with the AFL to see the trio hold the broadcast rights for another seven seasons in a deal that was said to be worth $4.5 billion. V’landys said he is confident that the NRL can match a deal of that size.
It was initially signalled that the rights negotiations would begin once the Rugby League Ashes concluded, but B&T understands official talks are yet to commence.
Delany’s confidence sits against the backdrop of Foxtel’s new ownership by DAZN, a change he describes as one of reinforcement rather than disruption. “DAZN is the world’s only global sports streaming company. It’s very big and they don’t know anything about Australia. That’s why they acquired the business,” he said.
He stressed that the lack of knowledge has proved to be an advantage rather than a liability. DAZN’s plan, as such, has been to back Foxtel’s existing strategy, not replace it.
“They have made it very clear they’re here to support us. They want us to keep doing what we’re doing. They love that it’s an Australian-run business that does sport for Australians and acquires sport for Australians, and want us to keep going.”
DAZN has also embraced Foxtel’s broader entertainment footprint, which Delany says helps the company stay anchored in Australian culture. “They also love that we have Binge and Foxtel, drama and everything else, which allows them to lean more into Australian culture. It’s not something that they’re looking to elsewhere around the world, but they love that we do it”.
One of the biggest strategic advantages, Delany said, is the new two-way international rights pipeline between Foxtel and DAZN’s global markets, with more international sports given airtime in Australia and the AFL, NRL and Cricket being introduced to sports fans across the world.
Another major shift is on the technical side of things, with Foxtel now preparing to migrate its streaming services to DAZN’s world-scale platform.
“They’re very, very good in technology. They’ve got world-scale technology, and we’re currently working on moving Kayo, Binge and Fox Sports over to the design technical streaming platform. They’ll still be called Kayo and Bing, they’ll still look the way they do, but we will be using their technology, which is a very big cost down for our organisation that allows us to reinvest.”
Despite News Corp’s ownership stepping back, Delany said Foxtel’s internal operations remain steady, with the same leadership, the same team and a clear runway as it heads into the NRL rights fight.
