Fox Footy Channel
Encyclopedia
The Fox Footy Channel was a channel exclusively dedicated to Australian rules football
. It was owned by Foxtel
, and operated out of their Melbourne based studios. It was available on Foxtel
, Austar
, Optus Television
, TransTV and Neighbourhood Cable
up until transmission was ceased on 1 October 2006. The channel is being revived for the 2012 AFL season after a new broadcast agreement was reached between Fox Sports and the AFL
.
won the television broadcast rights to the AFL
for the 2002 to 2006 seasons. It granted to free to air rights to the Nine Network
and Network Ten
and granted the subscription rights to Foxtel
. Fox Footy was originally offered by Foxtel for an additional subscription during the first two seasons of the rights agreement, however it was moved to the Basic package in February 2004, making it available to all Foxtel subscribers without additional charge for the balance of its life.
Due to broadcasting rights, each state had a separate version of the channel to allow free-to-air right holders exclusive live coverage. For example, if Channel Nine or Channel Ten broadcast a match between the Adelaide Crows
and Sydney Swans
live in Adelaide, Fox Footy would have been prevented from showing the match live, whereas if Seven or Ten didn't broadcast it in Melbourne, Fox Footy would be allowed to show it live there. Fox Footy typically repeated all matches after they were played, although often with the commentary of the free-to-air network that presented it live originally. Fox Footy only broadcast the AFL and not any state football leagues such as SANFL
, WAFL
or VFL
.
and Network Ten
. On 23 August 2006, Foxtel announced the Fox Footy Channel would cease broadcasting at the conclusion of the current AFL season and be replaced with Fox Sports 3. Foxtel CEO Kim Williams
stated "It's not financially viable to continue operating a 24-hour-a-day (Australian rules) football channel when we can only get three live games a week and not on the terms we have sought." The channel ended after a replay of the 2006 AFL Grand Final
at 4.00am. Seven and Ten later, came to terms with Foxtel and four games per round will be shown on pay-TV, through the Fox Sports
channels.
match between Hawthorn
, Richmond
and North Melbourne
broadcast that night. Fox Footy will broadcast all NAB Cup games exclusively (except for the NAB Cup Grand Final which will also broadcast on Seven
), all home and away matches and all finals matches (except for the Grand Final which will screen exclusively on Seven). All matches will be broadcast live to air
in both Standard
and High Definition
with no commercial breaks during play. When two live matches are being played simultaneously, Fox Sports 1
will broadcast one of the matches. Football personalities and commentators who have newly signed or re-signed to be apart of the relaunched channel include Eddie McGuire
(who will commentate 1 non-Collingwood
match a week and host his own talk show), Gerard Healy
, Paul Roos
, Jason Dunstall
, Dwayne Russell
, Brad Johnson
, Alastair Lynch
, Tony Shaw
, Liam Pickering
, David King
, Danny Frawley
, Mark Ricciuto
, Glen Jakovich
, Anthony Hudson
and Dermott Brereton
. For more information on the revival see Fox Footy
.
The Sunday afternoon game covered by Fox Footy usually had the combination of Grybas, Carey and Healy; Saturday afternoon saw Bennett, Schwass, Lynch and Shaw; while Bartlett and Campbell were among the Saturday night match commentators.
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
. It was owned by Foxtel
Foxtel
Foxtel is an Australian pay television company, operating cable, direct broadcast satellite television and IPTV services. It was formed in 1995 through a joint venture established between Telstra and News Corporation....
, and operated out of their Melbourne based studios. It was available on Foxtel
Foxtel
Foxtel is an Australian pay television company, operating cable, direct broadcast satellite television and IPTV services. It was formed in 1995 through a joint venture established between Telstra and News Corporation....
, Austar
Austar
Austar is an Australian telecommunications company. Its main business activity is Subscription Television but it is also involved with internet access and mobile phones...
, Optus Television
Optus Television
Optus Television is the cable television division of Australian telecommunications company Optus.-History:Its immediate predecessor was Optus Vision, a joint venture between, Optus and Continental Cablevision with small shareholdings by media companies Publishing and Broadcasting Limited and Seven...
, TransTV and Neighbourhood Cable
Neighbourhood Cable
Neighbourhood Cable is a telecommunications provider based in regional Victoria, Australia . Neighbourhood Cable owns and operates Hybrid Fibre Coaxial cable networks in three Victorian regional cities:* Mildura* Ballarat* Geelong...
up until transmission was ceased on 1 October 2006. The channel is being revived for the 2012 AFL season after a new broadcast agreement was reached between Fox Sports and the AFL
AFL
AFL may refer to:* American Federation of Labor, one of the first federations of labor unions in the United States, and now part of the AFL-CIO* American Football League AFL may refer to:* American Federation of Labor, one of the first federations of labor unions in the United States, and now part...
.
History
The channel was created in 2002 after News LimitedNews Limited
News Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The publicly listed company's interests span newspaper and magazine publishing, Internet, Pay TV, National Rugby League, market research, DVD and film distribution, and film and television production trading assets.News Limited...
won the television broadcast rights to the AFL
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
for the 2002 to 2006 seasons. It granted to free to air rights to the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
and Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
and granted the subscription rights to Foxtel
Foxtel
Foxtel is an Australian pay television company, operating cable, direct broadcast satellite television and IPTV services. It was formed in 1995 through a joint venture established between Telstra and News Corporation....
. Fox Footy was originally offered by Foxtel for an additional subscription during the first two seasons of the rights agreement, however it was moved to the Basic package in February 2004, making it available to all Foxtel subscribers without additional charge for the balance of its life.
Due to broadcasting rights, each state had a separate version of the channel to allow free-to-air right holders exclusive live coverage. For example, if Channel Nine or Channel Ten broadcast a match between the Adelaide Crows
Adelaide Crows
The Adelaide Football Club, nicknamed The Crows, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Adelaide, South Australia, playing in the Australian Football League ....
and Sydney Swans
Sydney Swans
The Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney...
live in Adelaide, Fox Footy would have been prevented from showing the match live, whereas if Seven or Ten didn't broadcast it in Melbourne, Fox Footy would be allowed to show it live there. Fox Footy typically repeated all matches after they were played, although often with the commentary of the free-to-air network that presented it live originally. Fox Footy only broadcast the AFL and not any state football leagues such as SANFL
South Australian National Football League
The South Australian National Football League is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the governing body for the sport of Australian rules football in South Australia....
, WAFL
West Australian Football League
The West Australian Football League is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The WAFL is the second-most popular in the state, behind the nation-wide Australian Football League...
or VFL
Victorian Football League
The Victorian Football League which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association , taking its new name as from the 1996 season, is the premier Australian rules football league in Victoria The Victorian Football League (VFL) which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association...
.
End of the channel
The future of the channel was placed in doubt after the awarding of the AFL rights from 2007 to the Seven NetworkSeven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
and Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
. On 23 August 2006, Foxtel announced the Fox Footy Channel would cease broadcasting at the conclusion of the current AFL season and be replaced with Fox Sports 3. Foxtel CEO Kim Williams
Kim Williams
Kim Williams was an American naturalist, writer, and the longest-ever running guest commenter on NPR where she was a guest commentator on the radio show All Things Considered for over ten and a half years.-Biography :...
stated "It's not financially viable to continue operating a 24-hour-a-day (Australian rules) football channel when we can only get three live games a week and not on the terms we have sought." The channel ended after a replay of the 2006 AFL Grand Final
2006 AFL Grand Final
The 2006 AFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Sydney Swans and West Coast Eagles, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 30 September 2006. It was the 110th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League/Australian Football League, staged to...
at 4.00am. Seven and Ten later, came to terms with Foxtel and four games per round will be shown on pay-TV, through the Fox Sports
Fox Sports (Australia)
Fox Sports is an Australia group of sports channels. They are owned by the Premier Media Group, which is in turn owned by News Corporation, and Consolidated Media Holdings. Its main competitors are ESPN, which has little local content and the free-to-air digital channel One HD...
channels.
Revival
It was announced on 28 April 2011 that the channel will be revived for the 2012 AFL season. The channel will return exclusively on Foxtel and its broadcasting partners, under the proposed new name of Fox Sports AFL, which was later changed back to its original name Fox Footy. The channel will relaunch on Friday 17 February 2012 with the first NAB Cup round-robinRound-robin tournament
A round-robin tournament is a competition "in which each contestant meets all other contestants in turn".-Terminology:...
match between Hawthorn
Hawthorn Football Club
The Hawthorn Football Club, nicknamed the Hawks, is a professional Australian rules football club in the Australian Football League . The club, founded in 1902, is the youngest of the Victorian-based teams in the AFL. The team play in Brown & Gold vertically striped guernseys...
, Richmond
Richmond Football Club
The Richmond Football Club, nicknamed The Tigers, is an Australian rules football club which competes in the Australian Football League. Richmond shares healthy rivalries with Carlton, Collingwood and Essendon. After winning five premierships between 1967 and 1980, the club hit the depths in 1990,...
and North Melbourne
North Melbourne Football Club
The North Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Kangaroos, is the fourth oldest Australian rules football club in the Australian Football League and is one of the oldest sporting clubs in Australia and the world...
broadcast that night. Fox Footy will broadcast all NAB Cup games exclusively (except for the NAB Cup Grand Final which will also broadcast on Seven
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
), all home and away matches and all finals matches (except for the Grand Final which will screen exclusively on Seven). All matches will be broadcast live to air
Live television
Live television refers to a television production broadcast in real-time, as events happen, in the present. From the early days of television until about 1958, live television was used heavily, except for filmed shows such as I Love Lucy and Gunsmoke. Video tape did not exist until 1957...
in both Standard
576i
576i is a standard-definition video mode used in PAL and SECAM countries. In digital applications it is usually referred to as "576i", in analogue contexts it is often quoted as "625 lines"...
and High Definition
1080i
1080i is the shorthand name for a high-definition television mode. The i means interlaced video; 1080i differs from 1080p, in which the p stands for progressive scan. The term 1080i assumes a widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9, implying a frame size of 1920×1080 pixels...
with no commercial breaks during play. When two live matches are being played simultaneously, Fox Sports 1
Fox Sports (Australia)
Fox Sports is an Australia group of sports channels. They are owned by the Premier Media Group, which is in turn owned by News Corporation, and Consolidated Media Holdings. Its main competitors are ESPN, which has little local content and the free-to-air digital channel One HD...
will broadcast one of the matches. Football personalities and commentators who have newly signed or re-signed to be apart of the relaunched channel include Eddie McGuire
Eddie McGuire
Edward Joseph "Eddie" McGuire AM is an Australian television presenter and businessman known for his long association with Australian rules football and the Channel 9 television network....
(who will commentate 1 non-Collingwood
Collingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
match a week and host his own talk show), Gerard Healy
Gerard Healy
Gerard Healy is a former Australian rules footballer and commentator.Healy attended St Bede's College in Mentone, where he was the Senior Football Captain.-Melbourne Demons:...
, Paul Roos
Paul Roos (Australian rules footballer)
Paul Roos is a former Australian rules football player and coach in the VFL and Australian Football League.Playing the majority of his career with Fitzroy, Roos was one of the teams greats, captaining the side for a long time and was acknowledged as its best player for several seasons, being named...
, Jason Dunstall
Jason Dunstall
Jason Hadfield Dunstall is a former Australian rules football player for the Hawthorn Football Club of the AFL. He is the third greatest goalkicker in the history of the VFL/AFL. Dunstall is regarded as one of the greatest full-forwards to have ever played, kicking 1254 goals, a feat only...
, Dwayne Russell
Dwayne Russell
Dwayne John Russell is a former Australian rules footballer and currently a commentator of the sport. He played for the Port Adelaide Football Club in the SANFL, before crossing over to VFL club Geelong in 1987...
, Brad Johnson
Brad Johnson (Australian rules footballer)
Brad Johnson is a former Australian rules footballer who was the captain of Australian Football League team Western Bulldogs...
, Alastair Lynch
Alastair Lynch
Alastair Graeme Lynch is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played in the Australian Football League . He is best known as a three time premiership full-forward for the Brisbane Lions....
, Tony Shaw
Tony Shaw
Anthony 'Tony' Shaw is a former Australian rules footballer, coach and media personality.-Playing career:Shaw was recruited to Collingwood from Reservoir-Lakeside to make his debut in 1977 alongside brother Ray...
, Liam Pickering
Liam Pickering
Liam Michael Pickering is a former Australian rules footballer in the VFL/AFL.-Football career:He played for the Geelong Football Club and North Melbourne Football Club. He played 102 games with Geelong from 1993–1999, before his retirement from AFL football...
, David King
David King (Australian rules footballer)
David King is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the North Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League . He debuted for the Kangaroos in 1994 after being recruited from Port Melbourne...
, Danny Frawley
Danny Frawley
Danny Frawley is a former Australian rules footballer and coach and a current football commentator with Fox Sports.He is the nephew of Collingwood player Des Tuddenham and the uncle of current Melbourne Football Club player James Frawley.- Football career :Recruited from Ballarat, after attending...
, Mark Ricciuto
Mark Ricciuto
Mark Anthony Ricciuto is a former Australian rules football player, who played for the Adelaide Crows in the Australian Football League...
, Glen Jakovich
Glen Jakovich
Glen Jakovich is a former Australian rules footballer for the West Coast Eagles.Glen was recruited from South Fremantle in Western Australia and debuted in 1991 and played most of his career at the Centre Half Back position, in the number 27 gernsey...
, Anthony Hudson
Anthony Hudson
For the footballer of the same name see Anthony Hudson Anthony Hudson is an Australian rules football commentator on both television and radio.-Early career:...
and Dermott Brereton
Dermott Brereton
Dermott Hugh Brereton is a former Australian rules football player in the Australian Football League, regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation. Of Irish descent , he is known for his aggressive style of play. Brereton kicked 464 goals and played in five Premierships for during...
. For more information on the revival see Fox Footy
Fox Footy
Fox Footy is an upcoming Australian Rules football subscription television channel dedicated to screening Australian rules football matches and related programming. It will be owned by Premier Media Group, operated out of their Melbourne based studios and available on Foxtel, Austar and Optus...
.
Former 2002-2006 commentary team
- Clinton GrybasClinton GrybasClinton Andrew Grybas was a leading Australian rules football and sports radio and television commentator. His death at only 32 years of age was thought to be as a result of falling whilst sleepwalking.-Career:...
- Matthew Campbell
- Jason Bennett
- Kevin Bartlett
- Gerard HealyGerard HealyGerard Healy is a former Australian rules footballer and commentator.Healy attended St Bede's College in Mentone, where he was the Senior Football Captain.-Melbourne Demons:...
- Jason DunstallJason DunstallJason Hadfield Dunstall is a former Australian rules football player for the Hawthorn Football Club of the AFL. He is the third greatest goalkicker in the history of the VFL/AFL. Dunstall is regarded as one of the greatest full-forwards to have ever played, kicking 1254 goals, a feat only...
- Wayne SchwassWayne SchwassWayne Schwass was an Australian rules football player in the VFL/AFL who debuted in 1988.He is notable as one of only a few New Zealand-born players of Māori heritage in the history of the VFL/AFL....
- Alistair Lynch (special comments)
- Tony ShawTony ShawAnthony 'Tony' Shaw is a former Australian rules footballer, coach and media personality.-Playing career:Shaw was recruited to Collingwood from Reservoir-Lakeside to make his debut in 1977 alongside brother Ray...
(special comments) - Wayne CareyWayne CareyWayne Carey is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the North Melbourne and Adelaide Football Clubs in the Australian Football League ....
(special comments) - Tiffany CherryTiffany CherryTiffany Cherry is an Australian sports broadcaster, best known for her role as boundary rider on the now defunct Fox Footy in the channel's AFL coverage...
(boundary rider)
The Sunday afternoon game covered by Fox Footy usually had the combination of Grybas, Carey and Healy; Saturday afternoon saw Bennett, Schwass, Lynch and Shaw; while Bartlett and Campbell were among the Saturday night match commentators.
Programming
Fox Footy produced and aired shows, including:- White Line FeverWhite Line FeverWhite Line Fever was an Australian Football League-related television show, airing from 2000 to 2006 during the regular football season. It was based on a talkback radio format, airing live weeknightly at 7.30pm AEST on the Fox Footy Channel on the Foxtel, Austar and Optus pay television...
- Saturday Central
- On the CouchOn the CouchOn the Couch is an Australian television program focusing on the current issues in the Australian Football League. From its debut in 2002 through to 2006, it was shown on the now defunct Fox Footy Channel. Since then it has been broadcast on Fox Sports....
- Living With Footballers
- AFL Lovematch
- The Gospel
- Grumpy Old Men
- Classic Quarters
- The Fox Footy Archive
- Fox League TeamsFox League TeamsFox League Teams is a weekly show that is broadcast on the Fox Sports. It is currently shown on Fox Sports and it is known as AFL Teams and it is hosted by former footballer Brian Taylor and members of the Fox Sports AFL commentary team every Thursday night during the AFL season.The show was...
- Fox Footy Feature
- From The FOX Footy Vault
- Footy Flashbacks