Financially-smashed A-League clubs can expect another huge hit in April, with a TV broadcast rights expert predicting Fox Sports will cancel future payments while the competition is shuttered - and possibly walk away altogether.

A quarterly installment believed to be around $900,000 is due to each of the 11 clubs next month but with the league locked down by the coronavirus, rights holders Fox Sports aren’t expected to sign any cheques for non-existent content.

Colin Smith, head of the consultancy Global Media & Sports, fears the beginning of the end of Fox Sports’ $57.6 million annual commitment to football may be imminent, with the sport unable to deliver on its contractual obligations and now technically in breach after Tuesday’s suspension by FFA.

“In normal circumstances Fox Sports would not want to shoot down football when the A-League is facing its toughest scenario,” said Smith.

CLICK THE LINK read the rest. help out SBS 

https://theworldgame.sbs.com.au/fox-sports-primed-to-pull-pin-on-a-league-claims-broadcast-rights-guru

i wonder if we could get an optus deal on board if enough supporters stepped up and guaranteed they would sign up for optus if they bought on the a-league 

FFA Gonna have to be innovative now

As opposed to what Colin Smith said Optus are looking to increase Sport, see the recent UEFA, Copa America and J.League deals. Optus will definitely be in the mix. They will be looking to take NBN contracts off Telstra and sport (particularly Football) seems to be the way they are looking at increasing their reach.

https://www.espn.com.au/football/australian-a-league/story/4078186/football-federation-australias-last-opportunity-to-reset-and-fulfill-soccers-true-potential

Football Federation Australia's last opportunity to reset and fulfill soccer's true potential

When Football Federation Australia CEO James Johnson said on Tuesday that "mission difficult, had become mission impossible," he was talking about the desire to complete the 2019-20 A-League season. But he could have just as easily have been summarising the game's attempts to stay afloat in its current model.

If reports circulating on Wednesday are to be believed, the suspension of the current A-League season has presented the opportunity for Fox Sports, the local broadcaster, to tear up their $57m-a-year deal, midway through it's six-year term. This would come as no surprise to many, after a year of cost cutting and staff redundancies that have decimated coverage of sports like rugby union and football.

In simple terms, without the Fox money, the A-League in its current form is unsustainable. The competition as we know it, would change -- and change dramatically. Some clubs may be able to adapt and survive, but others could simply disappear -- mainly due to the current A-League ownership model of private investors, many of whom have a chequered history when it comes to investment. The planned separation of the league for the FFA, would be in tatters.

Time to run on a budget and load up with teams like SMFC.

-PB

The league isn't technically in breach. It is in breach

Due to outside circumstances (force majeure)

But they are still in breach. 

It depends on the wording of any force majeure clauses in the contract.  The obligations of each party after the force majeure event ceases can be stated in the contract.

Hi agree it will be. But force majeure by definition is unknown, unpredictable and unforeseen and will always allow for a contract to be broken, just on a “no fault” basis. Otherwise the failure of one party can become a systemic failure of a second party. 

With Channel 9 threatening to pull out of the NRL contract, its interest times ahead of for Aus sport within the next few months.

Will we have an a-league by October is anyone's guess.

None of us have access to that contract, so we can only offer educated guesses based on experience.

However, that Fox doesn't have to pay for a product FFA fails to deliver is a basic principle, and the fact that this is a continuing and open ended situation is highly likely to render the agreement between the parties null and void.  

It is going to be interesting times in the pro sports world in this country when the Covid-19 business has run its course and the TV networks and the difference codes look to pick up the pieces.  The underlying context is that Foxtel is worse shape than any of the sports codes and none of the FTA networks are doing well, with the future for them in the streaming age looking bleak.

As such, I would be surprised if they collectively don't take this opportunity to walk back the ludicrous deals they signed with the AFL, NRL  and Cricket Australia.  I don't believe there will be any kind of deal for Super Rugby or the A League.  Both will have to hope that Optus sees value in adding them to the streaming sports table.  

Personally I think Optus will look to acquire the A League, but without competition the offer will be as low as they can push it.  There are limits, however:  push the value of the deal too hard and they won't be accessing a professional sports product, so there has to be a balance.  As low as they can push, but not so low as to destroy the integrity of the competition.  As to what that figure is, who knows.  Given current losses by owners, the League may be below it already.  

One thing is certain:  if Optus does pick up the A League, the clubs will need to provide (produce) the content by subcontracting to a OB production company.

Yes, but the whole talk of "ZOMG FFA SUK BECOZ DEY BREECHED DA CONTRAK" that's generally implied by some people, is what I'm getting at

Regardless if Foxtel pull the pin or not we might have to see a restructured HAL. FFA and clubs will have to re think the rules on visa and marquee players for eg. Cash wont be easy to come by.

We need Fox to pull the pin to speed up the process of reform. Still the game is beholden to the whims of Fox Sports and the ridiculous level of control they have over the entirety of the game.

the club run competition is much better equipped to deal with this than the ffa was before the recent changes

Agree that this change has to happen and will. I know that Fox 💵 hasn't made any the game possible but I detest Murdock and what he represents, and in recent times Fox has been openly hostile to our game. Worth remembering that Lachlan Murdoch is by reputation even more far right than his father and a hardware core rugby league man. There is no future for the game with Fox. 

well I hope your happy now mate.

That 57 million a year deal for 10 A-league clubs and socceroos world cup games wasnt a bad deal to be honest.

If Foxtel does tear the deal up, good luck finding anyone thats willing to play 20-30 million a year for the A-league and Socceroos games.

You think Channel 7 will offer a good deal for the A-league? Keep dreaming.

Optus is the only hope now.

The tv deal never included Socceroos games. They’re sold separately by AFC. 

Waz, please direct me to where I've stated that.

Actually the tv deal includes the Socceroos  and Matildas friendlies which are sold by the FFA.

I thought that might be the case, I wasn't 100% sure, mind you, I can't remember the last time the socceroos played a friendly.

Last friendlys I remember were before WCUP against Norway, Czech R snd Hungary

We lost to Korea

https://www.foxsports.com.au/football/socceroos/socceroos-vs-south-korea-rhyan-grants-bizarre-defensive-tactic/news-story/eb7d2ebbb475bc5417ed5f6c81c2cd6f

Before that were the friendlies before another disastrous Asian Cup under Arnie

We've played 15 friendlies since winning the 2015 Asian Cup, and 8 of them were pre 2018 WC / pre 2019 Asian Cup friendlies.
In total, we have played 52 games since 2015, not including the Asian Cup in 2015. That's a pretty small chunk, considering most of them are pre-tournament friendlies

pretty much everyone involved in the game was expecting it to be closer to $80 million a year at the time. the lowy ffa fucked up the negotiations.

it will be interesting what the new club run league will be able to do in negotiations. i expect they will have a bigger picture in mind and wont be limiting themselves to australia's limited cable network operators. streaming is definitely the pathway forward. and when you look at who offers streaming there becomes a lot more opportunity than optus, fox, and the handful of traditional tv channels. 

i could see a streaming service like stan licking its lips at the chance to pick up discount sports to fill out their content. i think we will lose some money, but i dont think it will bottom out because there are services and channels which would jump on it at a certain price.

If ALeague doesn't play in April, or May, then kiss goodbye the last 20% payment to the clubs. Thats thousands of dollars.

I think everybody is expecting that.

Its about $900k per club they will be missing out on.