That’s according to the Australian Financial Review, which reports an agreement will be signed by the end of the month.
The AFR indicates Supercars will achieve “a significant uplift on the roughly $165 million Foxtel and Seven West Media deal signed five years ago”, with expectations it’ll top $200 million.
The current five-year deal was trumpeted as worth $200 million when announced, including cash and contra components.
The AFR notes “the sport’s tailwinds globally since the success of the Formula 1: Drive to Survive Netflix series” as a contributing factor to a potentially bigger payday for Supercars.
Foxtel is poised to extend its relationship with the championship while Seven and Ten are claimed to both remain contenders for the free-to-air component.
Speedcafe believes Seven is almost certain to get the nod in part due to its superior size and reach compared to Ten and its ability to cross-promote through the AFL.
Toyota’s entry into Supercars next season should open more cross-promotional opportunities between the codes, given the car giant is also the naming rights partner of the football league.
Already thought to be as good as done, the TV deals should be wrapped up well in advance of James Warburton taking over Supercars CEO duties from Shane Howard on July 23.
Warburton spent five years in the top job at Seven before exiting the media company in mid-2024.
Whether a bigger TV deal opens the door to an expansion of the Supercars calendar remains to be seen.
Under the current agreement running more than 12 events does not earn Supercars more TV money, but it must pay its teams an additional $60,000 per event, per car.
Supercars elected to fund an expansion to 13 events this season to facilitate its new Finals Series, which needed three events after the Bathurst 1000 to get off the ground.
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