AFL FANS ASSOCIATION (AFLFA): “GIVING FOOTY FANS A VOICE”
“It’s hard to fathom that in season 2025, there is no Free to Air (FTA) footy on Saturday in Victoria, Tasmania and the Northern Territory and only some FTA footy in the other states”, said Ron Issko, President of the AFL Fans Association.
Prominent in both media coverage and social media has been criticism of no live Saturday football telecasts in Victoria for the entire season.
This comes after fans just set a new record game attendance for Round One with 431,505 fans in attendance easily surpassing the previous record. AFL CEO Andrew Dillon stated, “Round One and all nine matches are always such an exciting time for all our clubs, and we are so thankful for all the fans turning out in record numbers.”
Ron stated, “Fans are the lifeblood of footy and the largest stakeholders in the game. Removing FTA footy on Saturday and expecting fans to pay for Foxtel/Kayo is not the way to thank fans – rather, it’s taking fans for granted. With the cost of living pressures, not all fans can afford to pay for streaming services to watch the footy.”
Foxtel has confirmed that all Saturday games for the home-and-away season will be broadcast exclusively on Fox Footy in Victoria, Tasmania and Northern Territory. For the other states there will be no live FTA Saturday games for at least the first 8 or 10 rounds, depending on where you live.
The AFL Fans Association believes that the entire AFL community should have access to watching footy on Saturday – not just those who attend or have access to streaming services.
“Clearly, the AFL’s $4.5 billion broadcast deal has struck a nerve amongst fans. We have had numerous fans and supporters all around Australia reach out to us stating their unhappiness with not being able to see live Saturday footy on FTA”, said Ron.
Ron stated “We believe that the broadcast deal is not fairly balanced and we call on Andrew Dillon to reinstate FTA footy on Saturday so that all fans and supporters can enjoy watching the best game in the world.”
AFLFA membership is free, and fans are encouraged to join at www.aflfans.org.au
More information: Email: media@aflfans.org.au.