Rising costs put squeeze on local pubs airing live sport
There has been outrage this year among AFL fans about the lack of free-to-air coverage of games on a Saturday. To view a Saturday match, fans need to buy a Foxtel or Kayo package. It’s not only causing further back pocket pain, but it’s also preventing fans who can’t afford the platforms from seeing the games.
And it seems, pubs that have been playing the matches are also facing economic hurdles.
For pubs, the lack of sports coverage goes beyond AFL.
The escalating fees associated with subscription services are becoming unsustainable for many venues. Comedian Fergus Neal recounted being unable to watch a live AFL match at a Fitzroy pub over the weekend due to prohibitive costs.
According to Neal, the venue faced a $4,000 charge to broadcast Saturday games on Foxtel, a major sports subscription service. Benny Johnson, former publican of the Lord Gladstone Hotel in Sydney's Chippendale, shared a similar experience, noting that his venue previously incurred a $2,500 fee based on its size before he discontinued the service.
Speaking with Yahoo Finance, Johnson expressed concerns that if broadcast fees do not decrease, many local pubs could cease showing live sport on Saturdays altogether. "It's the end of an era, where the pub was a meeting place to go watch key events like this," Johnson lamented. "It's just a shame."
Johnson, who has previously advocated against exorbitant pricing for food and beverages in pubs, believes that these broadcast costs are eroding the fundamental role of the Australian local pub as a community hub. He warned that if smaller venues are forced to stop showing sport, larger hospitality groups, which can absorb these fees more readily, stand to benefit.
"It would funnel all the money, all the power, and all the attention to a select few of the bigger groups who are going to be able to keep it on because it doesn't hurt their bottom line at all," Johnson said. He suggested that for these larger entities, the substantial subscription fees might represent a less significant financial consideration compared to other operational expenses.
Neal told Yahoo Finance that it would be a regrettable development if Australians could no longer rely on their local pub to broadcast football due to unaffordable fees. "Footy should be free for every Australian," he said. Drawing a parallel to a national landmark, he stated, "Hiding sport behind black screens in the name of corporate profits is akin to draping a curtain over Bondi Beach and making Australians pay to swim." He emphasised that "watching footy at the pub is an Australian tradition and should be protected."
Public sentiment appears to align with Neal's views. One online commenter suggested that at an $8 schooner price point, a pub would need to sell 500 beers to recoup a $4,000 broadcast fee, urging for the wider availability of football. Another expressed dismay that watching football now often requires payment, while a third simply deemed the situation "unAustralian."
The current landscape sees various streaming services vying for exclusive sports broadcasting rights, placing these events behind paywalls. Kayo offers a range of sports including AFL, National Rugby League (NRL), cricket, Formula 1, Supercars, National Basketball Association (NBA), and National Football League (NFL). Stan Sports, owned by Nine Entertainment, features rugby, grand slam tennis, and the UEFA Champions League. While some games are still available on free-to-air channels like Nine and Seven, these streaming platforms position themselves as comprehensive destinations for continuous sports coverage.
Venues are prohibited from using these residential subscriptions for commercial broadcasting and face potential fines of up to $860,000 for doing so. The Australian Hotels Association (AHA) Victoria has issued warnings to licensees regarding unauthorised streaming practices. Neal mentioned that the Fitzroy pub he visited had received a cease and desist letter from Kayo after attempting to use a residential streaming service.
Kayo and Foxtel are set to come under the ownership of UK streaming service DAZN later this year following a significant acquisition by News Corp. It remains uncertain whether this change in ownership will lead to more affordable subscription options for venues or individual consumers.
Jonathan Jackson, 15th May 2025
