The Victorian Football League has a new free-to-air broadcast partner with Seven Melbourne securing the 2015 and 2016 broadcast rights to Victoria’s premier Australian Rules Football competition. Seven will take over the broadcast rights from ABC TV.
Under the new agreement with AFL Victoria, Seven will show the VFL “Match of the Round” live on Channel 7 in Melbourne every week throughout the regular season, as well as VFL finals and the VFL Grand Final.
It appears that Channel 7 Melbourne will broadcast the VFL “Match of the Round” live as a lead in to its Saturday arvo AFL broadcast game. Its Saturday arvo AFL game is broadcast on delay into the Melbourne market.
The Managing Director of Seven Melbourne, Lewis Martin, said:
“We’re thrilled to be broadcasting more live football to Victorians and adding to our blue-chip AFL and sports portfolio, while complementing our local grassroots football initiatives. And we’ll do it with the passion, insight and quality that have been the Seven tradition.”
Grant Williams, General Manager Community Football Operations for the AFL, said:
“The televising of Peter Jackson VFL games on Channel 7 will provide an enormous boost to the profile of the VFL competition, the participating clubs and the many young and exciting players that play each week in the VFL”.
Seven has enjoyed rating success with its local South Australian coverage of the SANFL and it will be hoping to replicate that success with its broadcast of Victoria’s premier football league.
Seven’s SANFL broadcasts are produced by McGuire Media and, according to Fairfax Media, Seven will replicate that arrangement for its VFL coverage. JAMTV (a McGuire Media company) already produces Talking Footy for Seven.
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