Money did the talking in Australian sports during '14. The Australian Football league is expecting an A$2B broadcast deal, Australia and New Zealand are offering record prize money for the '15 Cricket World Cup, and the Australian Open has boosted the payoff by 10% to $32M.
AFL BROADCAST DEAL: The Australian Football League’s new broadcast deal, which will take effect in ’17, could reach A$2B, with bidding expected to start at A$1.5B. Current rights holders Seven, Foxtel/Fox Sports and Telstra acquired the league’s rights in a five-year, A$1.25B back in '11. The AFL hopes to strike a deal midway through the year. While broadcasters Ten and Nine announced their interest in bidding, Seven said that it would remain “sensible” in its approach to retain the rights. In addition to the big networks, the AFL could also look to do a deal with the Apple TV network, while Google and YouTube could also emerge in discussions over the digital rights.
'15 CRICKET WORLD CUP: Australia and New Zealand will host the Int’l Cricket Council’s flagship event in ’15. Next year’s ICC Cricket World Cup will be the second one staged by the two countries and is scheduled to take place from Feb. 14-March 29. In November, the ICC announced a 20% increase in prize money. The total prize money will be $10M, which is $2M more than in ’11. Officials will also have a close eye on suspicious behavior as cricket has been plagued by a series of match-fixing scandals in recent times.
FORD OUT OF V8 SUPERCARS: Ford Australia said in early December that it would pull out of the V8 Supercars series following the ’15 season. The move ends the company’s longstanding rivalry with Holden. Media outlets reported that the move comes amid a global restructuring and plummeting car sales in Australia. Ford has remained uncommitted to motorsport and is instead spending its marketing budget on TV shows including the Voice and the Bachelorette. V8 Supercars CEO James Warburton admitted disappointment about Ford’s decision to cut financial ties with the sport, but said that the door would always be open should it ever want to return.
AUSTRALIAN OPEN: The first Grand Slam tournament of the year will see some improvements in ’15. Tournament organizers announced that prize money will see a 10% boost, Margaret Court will be the third stadium with a retractable roof and a new heat policy is expected to prevent drama. The overall prize money will be $32M, with each winner pocketing $2.6M. The new roof at the 7,500-seat Margaret Court has turned Melbourne Park into the first Grand Slam venue with three courts that can be covered in the event of rain or extreme heat. Amid predictions of another summer of above-average temperatures, it was reported that there would be adjustments to a heat policy that was widely debated during a scorching week last January.
