It’s been a decade since the groundbreaking deal with Foxtel that underpinned Supercars and its teams financially. The lion’s share of revenue teams generate is from the television broadcast, which boasts more than $200 million across five years.
The consequence of that agreement is a smaller portion of Supercars broadcasts are on free-to-air television at roughly 40 percent. Free-to-air broadcaster Seven pays just a fraction of what Fox Sports does and gets arguably the biggest ticket in town – the Bathurst 1000.
That’s due to anti-siphoning legislation that requires the Bathurst 1000 to have free-to-air coverage. The same anti-siphoning legislation keeps events like the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix and MotoGP Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix on Ten.
Alongside the Great Race, Seven gets a handful of other Supercars events including the season opener, the season-ending Adelaide Grand Final, and a few more making up six of the current 13-round roster.
Incoming Supercars CEO James Warburton, who was chief executive at Seven, said the current Supercars broadcast deal is comparable to major football codes NRL and AFL and indicated it was unlikely to change much heading into 2026 when a new broadcast agreement begins.
How sports are broadcast in Australia is a controversial topic. Some Supercars fans still bemoan the 2015 broadcast deal that reduced the volume of free-to-air coverage.
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The issue is not limited to Supercars. Australian cricket has largely been fought over between the free-to-air networks Seven, Nine, and Ten. However, the likes of Amazon and Disney have upset the apple cart by poaching exclusive rights to international tours and tournaments.
The 2023 Cricket World Cup was the last deal between Foxtel, Nine, and the ICC. From 2024, all international ICC tournaments are exclusive to Amazon. What impact that has on the game domestically remains to be seen.
While you might still rely on free-to-air broadcasts for your sporting fix, data shows viewing habits in Australia are beginning to change.
According to OzTam, the country’s official audience measurement source, children and teenagers barely watch free-to-air television. While free-to-air consumption is down on the whole, content consumption is up for streaming services.
According to Deloitte’s 2023 Media and Entertainment Consumer Insights report, most Australians paid for 3.2 streaming services.
From a user experience standpoint, the growth of streaming services is a balancing act amid the cost of living. In years gone by, Foxtel and Kayo were the go-to for sports fans, making it an easy decision. However, other subscription services – Amazon, Disney, Netflix, Stan, and Optus – have fractured the market for sports fans.
Just this week, Stan announced it acquired the English Premier League from Optus. The Nine-owned company also has its eyes on Formula 1. Netflix has dipped its toes into live streaming sports events, beginning with boxing.
Foxtel reportedly has a little over three million streaming service subscribers, one million of which are Kayo users.
Foxtel and Kayo still have a command on the sports streaming market with major properties like Formula 1, MotoGP, NASCAR, and Supercars alongside the major ball sports NRL and AFL – but the threat of other streaming services shouldn’t be understated.
Australian subscriber estimates (as of mid-2024)
- Netflix – 6.2 million
- Amazon Prime Video – 4.8 million
- Foxtel group – 4.7 million (includes Kayo, Binge, Foxtel Now)
- Disney Plus – 3.1 million
- Stan – 2.2 million (includes Stan Sport)
- Kayo Sports – 1.6 million
- Optus – 700,000
Notwithstanding the lion’s share of their content being television and movies, Netflix and Amazon are the biggest streaming players with more than six million and four million subscribers respectively, and sport is becoming a key area.
The growth of streaming services could be beneficial for Supercars if a major player comes along wanting exclusive rights. However, that would ultimately be the death knell of free-to-air coverage outside of the Bathurst 1000.
As viewing consumption habits change, we ask in this week’s Pirtek Poll whether you still rely on free-to-air TV to watch Supercars.
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