Reports in Australia claim that major pay-TV sports operator Optus is set to forge a sub-licensing alliance with free-to-air commercial sports heavyweight Nine Entertainment, which will now broadcast the upcoming English Premier League soccer season through that tie-up.
The Australian Financial Review, which is owned by Nine Entertainment, has reported that Premier League games may be made available on the Nine-owned Stan Sport streaming service at the start of the new season, which kicks off on August 15 and will run through May 24, 2026.
Nine will reportedly pay A$60 million (US$39.2 million) of the A$100 million that Optus pays annually for the Premier League rights, with Optus covering the remaining $40 million.
Optus has held Premier League rights in Australia exclusively since 2016, when it replaced Fox Sports in a significant coup, striking a A$63 million deal starting with the 2016-17 campaign.
This agreement will cover the remaining three years of Optus’ current six-season broadcast contract for the Premier League, which runs through the 2027-28 campaign.
In recent months, the broadcaster’s owner, Singtel, has reportedly been looking to divest from its broadcast commitments.
In fact, in January, it was said that Nine Entertainment itself was in talks to acquire the Optus Sport service.
Optus’ portfolio is mostly comprised of soccer rights, with Japan’s J-League, South Korea’s K League, and North America’s National Women’s Soccer League also included, while it is currently preparing to cover European soccer's UEFA Womens European Championships in July.
Its core offering, however, is its English Premier League coverage, and without exclusivity, it is possible that Singtel will divest from TV sports altogether.
By comparison, Stan Sports’ rights portfolio is more diversified, including rugby union’s English Premiership, southern hemisphere Rugby Championship, and SVNS, tennis’ Davis Cup, and motor racing’s Formula E, among other properties.
Optus could look instead to shutter Optus Sport, which has operated since 2016, entirely, in effect subsidizing Nine’s coverage.
In response to suggestions that such a move could soon take place, an Optus spokesperson stated: "All companies regularly review their businesses to ensure they are maximizing value and realizing their full potential – Optus is no different. We don’t comment on speculation.”
With the relegation of Leicester City (Harry Souttar) and Ipswich Town (Cameron Burgess, Massimo Luongo), as well as the sacking of Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou, there now remains no prominent Australian figure in the Premier League.
