Amazon Wants NRL TV Rights

The NRL’s broadcast rights negotiations are heating up — and Amazon Prime is now reportedly preparing a bid for rugby league rights in Australia.

In this episode of Moneyball, Scott Keenan is joined by Australian Financial Review media reporter Sam Buckingham-Jones to break down the biggest developments in the NRL media rights race, including Andrew Abdo leaving the NRL for Tennis Australia, Peter V’Landys chasing a $4 billion TV deal, and why Channel Nine, Stan Sport, Foxtel and Kayo could all be impacted by the arrival of Amazon Prime Video.

Sam explains why Amazon’s growing investment in global sport — including NFL Thursday Night Football, UEFA Champions League football and NHL hockey rights — could make the NRL its next major target in Australia.

The episode also explores:

• Why the NRL believes it can land a broadcast deal bigger than the AFL
• How Nine Entertainment and Stan Sport may be planning to reshape rugby league broadcasting
• Whether Foxtel and Kayo can hold onto the rights after 30 years
• The pressure now sitting on Peter V’Landys after publicly targeting a $4 billion deal
• The decline of the Australian free-to-air television advertising market
• How streaming services are changing sports media economics
• And the fascinating reporting that some NRL rule changes may have increased tries, stoppages and advertising inventory during broadcast negotiations

This is a deep dive into the future of NRL broadcasting, sports streaming, rugby league media rights, Amazon Prime Video, Channel Nine, Stan, Foxtel, Kayo and the business of Australian sport.

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