The ABC could be on the "verge of becoming a serious player in the
Australian football broadcasting landscape after securing a deal to
screen all of Australia's matches at January's Asian Cup live on
free-to-air television" -- plus November's "glamour friendly against Japan
in Osaka," according to Sebastian Hassett of the SYDNEY MORNING HERALD. A deal was struck over the weekend between Football
Federation Australia and "existing rights-holder Fox Sports to ensure the
tournament is broadcast to as many viewers as possible outside the pay
television domain." In addition to broadcasting Australia's matches, a "nightly highlights show will screen on ABC at 10pm and it will also
broadcast the quarter-final and semi-final matches on delay." In
addition, the ABC is "already the tournament's official radio
broadcaster." FFA CEO David Gallop said, "To have a multi-platform, subscription and free-to-air broadcast
partnership gives all Australians the chance to watch the Socceroos as
they strive to achieve the mantle of Asia's best football team." While the tournament is a "one-off broadcast opportunity," one insider said that the ABC's top authorities would be "closely monitoring
the ratings to gauge the interest in the competition among its
watchers." It is "thought that if enough fans tuned in, the network
would 'definitely' investigate broadcasting further matches, and
possibly even look at getting involved in A-League broadcasting" (SMH, 10/27).
