SBS is the traditional home of football in Australia.  In the past, they have managed to get huge ratings for world cup games, even in the middle of the night.

Hard to imagine anyone ever being better than what SBS has been over a 35 year period.

And that has nothing to do with their recent coverage. That's akin to suggesting everyone should still stick to Nokias because they were the most visible phone company for 20 years

Well SBS have a 35 year track record of treating the game with respect - no one else has this track record.

They were good when football was niche. It's past them by in regards to engaging TV content. Which is a shame and surprising considering how much effort they put into their digital platforms. 

Interesting article from 2015.

When it comes to discussing broadcast rights for the A-League, let’s begin by cutting the crap. It is not SBS who is losing ratings. Neither is it Fox Sports, whose figures are also down, who is losing ratings. It is the A-League that is losing ratings.By Les Murray 
13 NOV 2015 - 4:44 PM  UPDATED 13 NOV 2015 - 6:22 PM
If there is one thing that I learned while spending ten years as SBS head of sport it was that viewers, certainly when it comes to watching sport, don’t choose channels when it comes to deciding what to watch. They choose content. And it matters not a hoot to them which channel broadcasts the content they want to watch

.In recent times there has been quite some chatter about the future of the A-League’s current broadcast partnership with SBS. The suggestion, or certainly the innuendo, is that the Football Federation Australia is not happy with SBS and are looking for a new free to air partner.

This, to be frank, is unseemly. By which I mean the way commercial partners should publicly act while they are in commercial partnership. SBS’ current four year deal as the A-League’s free to air broadcaster is barely through its half way stage. It is due to expire in mid-2017.

Yet as long ago as last December, when SBS was barely half way through only its second season as the A-League broadcaster (and that of the Socceroos’ World Cup qualifiers), FFA’s David Gallop was already sending loud signals in the media that the FFA was courting other suitors.

It was not a nice thing to read at SBS headquarters in Artarmon.

I too found it a strange thing to read, given that I was in the room just two years earlier when Frank Lowy announced the new deal with SBS and Fox Sports, describing it as "a bloody good day".

Problems between SBS and FFA began early because of a number of factors. SBS chose to put the A-League on SBS 2, something that peeved FFA. SBS countered that SBS 2 was free and just as accessible as SBS.

SBS also said, "You give us Saturday games and we’ll put them on SBS One."

From the beginning SBS was not happy with the content they were getting: Friday evening games only, no derbies, no Big Blue, all of which were played on Saturdays or Sundays. SBS fought hard to get a better deal but were thwarted at every turn.

While I never supported the notion that the A-League games should be slotted on SBS 2, neither can it be argued that that under their contract SBS were ever given games that could potentially rate.  In the current season allocation the two highest rating teams in the league, Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC, will appear on SBS just eight times between them out of 27 rounds. The allocation avoids Sydney FC like a leper. They appear on SBS just twice.

But what of the reasons why Fox Sports' ratings have also slipped, despite being able to screen the big blockbusters?

This can only be for one reason: the A-League has lost much of its entertainment value. And one reason has to be the total absence of genuine marquee players. The league which once boasted players like Dwight Yorke, Robbie Fowler, Romario, Benito Carbone, Kazu Miura, Juninho, Harry Kewell, Alessandro Del Piero, Shinjo Ono and David Villa, now has none of that ilk.

Nondescript imports of doubtful appeal are now being paraded as marquees under the supposition that football fans who come through the turnstiles are both blind and stupid.The recent Sydney FC top of the table clash against Brisbane Roar, admittedly played on a drizzly Friday evening, attracted just 12,000 fans. Just 80,000 watched, out of the rain, on free to air SBS 2 and 73,000 on Fox.

This would not have happened while Del Piero was playing.There are two reasons for the lack of investment in marquees: (1) clubs have become more financially risk averse than ever, and (2) the coaches, who govern the acquisition process like self-serving czars, don’t want them.

I remember when one coach told the agent of Juninho, who was prepared to lower his wage demands by more than half, "I don’t want him."I remember Tony Popovic telling the courtiers of Michael Ballack the same thing: "I don’t want him."

Sure, the technical quality of the A-League is as high as maybe it has ever been. But the star quality, so essential for financial growth and market penetration, is not there.

SBS has nothing to apologise for, nor to be ashamed of when it comes to football audiences. SBS attracted an audience of 11 million for last year’s FIFA World Cup. The 2013 World Cup qualifier between Australia and Iraq had an SBS audience of 1.5 million, despite being on a one hour delay.

Yet FFA is now embarked on a new broadcasts deal in the hope that it will get bigger rights fees, bigger ratings and bigger exposure. This is despite the fact that SBS and Fox Sports have iron clad contracts and the rights cannot go elsewhere unless those networks are willing to let them go.My news to them is this:

As long as the ratings continue to be low and on the slide on SBS and Fox Sports, no network will pay more for them. And if the A-League is not good enough to rate, it ain’t gonna rate on Seven, Nine or Ten either.

If the FFA wants better ratings for the A-League it should start its work at headquarters in Whitlam Square. By fixing the A-League

sorry but they haven't treated the domestic game with any respect over the past 4 years. in fact i would go as far as saying that all the good work for football they have done over the decades has been undone over these 4 years.

SBS spent so many years after the start of the A-League turning their noses up at it,writing negative articles and had a serious chip on their shoulder and by the time they got the rights to it they didn't know what to do with it anymore. Their staff was filled with people who had slagged off the league for years. 

True aficionado's

Davide is correct. SBS have done their dash. They can not deliver an appropriate production expected in these times. 10 could but I'd be concerned with them main streaming it for the dumb FTA audience. ABC on the other hand would do a fine job.

isn't the A-league on the Anti siphoning list as well? Meaning that there has to be one game every week on FTA? Even super rugby has one Free to air game.

not according to wiki:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-siphoning_laws_in_Australia

So? ABC has Peter Wilkins, he commentated the W-league for a couple of years. He's from the Daryl Eastlake commentary school where you hide your ignorance by shouting. Compared to him Basheer is silk smoooth. 

more like a woman scorned

People from all sports are constantly whinging about the commentators.

Anyone who believes SBS got low ratings because of one commentator is being naive.

well when it comes to the round ball game, only the FA cup and world cup are safe.

The ultimate question is.... Do we go with ABC and be happy with getting 150-200,000 people watching in ABC on Saturday night?

Do we take the risk on going to channel 10/one HD and hoping the Dumb FTA audience can accept the A-league and hope we get upwards of 300,000?

Hate to break it to you all but the left wing traitorous filth that makes up the AyyyBeeeeCeeeeeeee love the ALF & the NRL so much even though they don't even televise it.  For their nutjob left wing politics they're all white bread eggball lovers.   

How seriously do you think they're going to take the Z League Wogball.   

Maybe if you add the following expanision teams they begin to gobble the Z League schlong,

The Dreamtime Dingoes FC
The Transgender NoTackleAtAll FC
The Diversity Divers FC

Getting the picture?  


The EffEffAyyy couldn't convince the FTA networks to take any interest at all in the Z League.     

How embarassment.   

have you ever watched and a-league game on sbs with the sound on?

I have doubts we will. Clearly the FTAs do too or they would have snapped it up for 4m. It's fuck all money in context. ABC is our best bet for FTA. Lock us into Foxtel we're going know where. FFA have fucked this up (gallop?). Why would abc pay more than $4m when they know We need exposure and non of the FTAs are interested (if true)? Ffa did well to nearly double the deal in this climate with no tension in the bids. But they're going to have to take a hit on the fta component rather than risk Foxtel holding the lot and losing control. I wouldn't be disappointed with ABC in HD on the main channel.

Often, if I'm cooking or tidying up after the family dinner on a Friday evening, I'll have the kitchen TV set on SBS.  

I honestly don't understand the hate for SBS.  I prefer Foxtel, but I can definitely watch the A-League on SBS with zero issue.

But I'm not one of these people who care about commentators - I really don't.

Have you ever listened to the Channel 9 or 7 commentary for NRL/AFL?

They genuinely make the NZ a-league commentators sound quite dulcet.

This is precisely the point - I don't really know any commentator who is universally loved - but people tune in to watch their sport anyway.

So personally, I cannot accept that SBS gets low A-League ratings merely because one commentator is disliked.

Ok, so someone posted a picture of Mr Potato Head as a joke but has anyone ever suggested he is the sole reason people don't watch SBS?

You are being pretty disingenuous(again)...

Having said that I genuinely choose to watch Friday night games on my laptop instead of a big screen tele simply because I can't stand him and the rest of the team there. Not to mention the picture quality. 

or Heston getting a job at Maccas

It's really not
SBS were never ever Heston 

Maeve O'Meara then

Agreed, At least if its given to ABC, Its certain to be on FTA every week. If given back to foxtel, they are not certain to hand it to channel 10

It's only one data point but, he is the sole reason I stopped watching the A League on SBS.  Moving it off HD meant that it was no longer even worth watching with the sound off.
Got Foxtel HD.  It's single greatest advantage is no Basheer.  Really.  Not even kidding.