Some have called it a huge television coup others have called it an adverse effect of Americanization on our culture, but love it or loathe it, the NFL coverage on Channel Seven and its sister channel 7mate is here to stay.
With the start of the American Football season now upon us and the ever popular, AFL season coming to a climax cross promotions for the NFL coverage have now reached fever pitch.
Channel Seven are looking to win their eighth consecutive year of ratings and it seems the NFL is a major part of their assault on other networks.
The five-year deal for an undisclosed fee has seen Channel Seven gain rights for NFL games on Sunday and Monday that includes the leagues flagship NBC’s Sunday Night Football and ESPN’s Monday Night Football matches as well as playoff matches and sporting TV’s ultimate showcase – the Super bowl.
Currently Channel Seven offloads its NFL entitlements on its sister channel – 7mate which can broadcast high definition matches, though it is likely bigger matches will be broadcast on the 7 networks main channel.
Channel Seven has also gained rights to NFL based shows broadcast on the NFL network.
The widespread promotion of the NFL on Channel Seven has raised the ire of a few sports viewers in this country and poses the question as to whether the NFL will be a success in this country and the growing prominence of American sports in our pop culture is a good thing.
Publicity staff from Channel Seven sport didn’t return our calls yesterday but in a press release sent to media they stated that they “Are delighted to be partners with the NFL in Australia” and are adamant the NFL will be a success “The signing of the NFL to Seven reaffirms a key strategy in our future: a focus on live coverage of major sports events across our broadcast television platform.”
Traffic volumes for NFL.com in Australia rank in the top 5 for the NFL globally, so it seems the popularity of the sport in Australia has grown markedly.
American broadcaster and journalist Ed Wyatt who has been involved in American Football coverage in Australia for the best part of a decade says the 7mate deal with the NFL is destined to be successful.
“The NFL is not trying to compete with the AFL or NRL… The season starts pretty much when the AFL season ends so it is perfect timing and Australians will just see it as another league to follow like they do with the EPL.”
Wyatt told the City Journal that despite the major differences between free flowing Australian sports and the stop start nature of Gridiron the NFL has found a niche in Australian sporting culture and the 7mate deal is a positive for fans.
“I know that viewers for the Super bowl in Australia have gone up every year, Australia has the highest NFL game pass subscription per capita outside the USA and Australian pro sports people tell me all the time (on Wyatt’s radio show on SEN) that they just love the elite nature of the sport.”
Wyatt also explained that interest in the NFL in this country had not only increased due to the advent of the internet but the rising popularity of sports video games and in particular the NFL’s Madden video game which sells more copies than any AFL game in Australia.
While Wyatt agrees with most pundits that the primary reason Channel Seven will broadcast NFL is for monetary reasons but the professionalism, excitement and all round brilliance of the NFL both on the field and in the commentary box and in the TV studio can only add to the quality of Australian television.
