Super Saturday.

[The Rocket]

As of around the end of March/beginning of April next year when your daylight savings begins and ours ends a 12.30 p.m. game out of England or  1.30 p.m. game out of France could be beamed into Australia at 9.30 p.m. This would last until the beginning of October when our clocks go forward again and you and France go back i.e. end of daylight savings. A period of around 26 weeks.

Foxtel`s NRL Super Saturday of League has long been one of its` prized viewing time slots with a 3.30p.m. 5.30p.m and 7.30p.m. games. Having a 9.30 p.m. game has often been considered the final piece of the puzzle, in fact one of the main arguments for a team in Perth has been the value to Foxtel of filling that timeslot.

I`d bet that a high profile game beamed into Australia would rate very well, teams like Catalans which have been getting a lot of media coverage in Oz due to high profile Aussie signings I`d bet would rate especially well. The other factor as well is that being on the end of three N.R.L. matches a lot of people would just leave the T.V. on if it was League, so in essence it is a captive audience. This is the N.R.L.`s nirvana as well, wall-to-wall League so that people have no inclination to turn over and watch another sport..

I read that Channel 4`s game is due to kick off at 12.30 p.m. I haven`t noticed a lot of complaints about that, but whether that could become a weekly fixture I don`t know. Would the heat or ability to be able to get people to the game be a problem.

Foxtel pay the N.R.L. ~$250m (135m pound) or about $1.2m Oz (643K pound)  per game for roughly around 210 games per year. Even if the RFL could sell a game a week at that timeslot even for half that price ~320k pound/game for the 26 weekends/matches during the period outlined in the first paragraph we`re talking about ~8m pound. 

I`ve chosen that figure just to give a rough idea of the numbers involved, at what point below that where it becomes not worth it would have to be calculated and of course this may only take place with the co-operation of Sky and Channel4.

Either way I reckon a `SuperLeague` match of the round - it could be marketed that way - would pull respectable ratings over here as part of Foxtel`s regular Super Saturday offering.

Would be interested to hear opinions.

 

 

[Damien]

If the Australian broadcasters paid enough to make it worthwhile then I am sure SL clubs would arrange games to facilitate such a thing.

As all matches are now going to have increased camera coverage of games SL is no longer as dependent on UK broadcasters for something like this to work. It certainly makes sense for SL to pursue this if it was a goer and I think they'd do it for far less than the example figures you give.

[Lowdesert]

2 hours ago, The Rocket said:

As of around the end of March/beginning of April next year when your daylight savings begins and ours ends a 12.30 p.m. game out of England or  1.30 p.m. game out of France could be beamed into Australia at 9.30 p.m. This would last until the beginning of October when our clocks go forward again and you and France go back i.e. end of daylight savings. A period of around 26 weeks.

Foxtel`s NRL Super Saturday of League has long been one of its` prized viewing time slots with a 3.30p.m. 5.30p.m and 7.30p.m. games. Having a 9.30 p.m. game has often been considered the final piece of the puzzle, in fact one of the main arguments for a team in Perth has been the value to Foxtel of filling that timeslot.

I`d bet that a high profile game beamed into Australia would rate very well, teams like Catalans which have been getting a lot of media coverage in Oz due to high profile Aussie signings I`d bet would rate especially well. The other factor as well is that being on the end of three N.R.L. matches a lot of people would just leave the T.V. on if it was League, so in essence it is a captive audience. This is the N.R.L.`s nirvana as well, wall-to-wall League so that people have no inclination to turn over and watch another sport..

I read that Channel 4`s game is due to kick off at 12.30 p.m. I haven`t noticed a lot of complaints about that, but whether that could become a weekly fixture I don`t know. Would the heat or ability to be able to get people to the game be a problem.

Foxtel pay the N.R.L. ~$250m (135m pound) or about $1.2m Oz (643K pound)  per game for roughly around 210 games per year. Even if the RFL could sell a game a week at that timeslot even for half that price ~320k pound/game for the 26 weekends/matches during the period outlined in the first paragraph we`re talking about ~8m pound. 

I`ve chosen that figure just to give a rough idea of the numbers involved, at what point below that where it becomes not worth it would have to be calculated and of course this may only take place with the co-operation of Sky and Channel4.

Either way I reckon a `SuperLeague` match of the round - it could be marketed that way - would pull respectable ratings over here as part of Foxtel`s regular Super Saturday offering.

Would be interested to hear opinions.

 

 

As Damien alludes to, SL bosses will be open to anything worthwhile.  

Personally, I would prefer the NRL/NFL razzmatazz with plenty of hype.  The C4 boss seemed enthusiastic about the recently agreed venture, so I doubt he would be against any further RL opportunities.

[Sir Kevin Sinfield]

This could be the reason Channel 4 have a Saturday 12:30pm kick off time

[BadlyOverdrawnBoy]

You'll get stuck to the sofa.

[Adelaide Tiger]

11 hours ago, Sir Kevin Sinfield said:

This could be the reason Channel 4 have a Saturday 12:30pm kick off time

If, and it’s a massive if, those at Channel 4 factored in selling the game to Foxtel as part of a long term plan they they should be bestowed with a Blue Peter badge!

[George Watt]

14 hours ago, The Rocket said:

As of around the end of March/beginning of April next year when your daylight savings begins and ours ends a 12.30 p.m. game out of England or  1.30 p.m. game out of France could be beamed into Australia at 9.30 p.m. This would last until the beginning of October when our clocks go forward again and you and France go back i.e. end of daylight savings. A period of around 26 weeks.

Foxtel`s NRL Super Saturday of League has long been one of its` prized viewing time slots with a 3.30p.m. 5.30p.m and 7.30p.m. games. Having a 9.30 p.m. game has often been considered the final piece of the puzzle, in fact one of the main arguments for a team in Perth has been the value to Foxtel of filling that timeslot.

I`d bet that a high profile game beamed into Australia would rate very well, teams like Catalans which have been getting a lot of media coverage in Oz due to high profile Aussie signings I`d bet would rate especially well. The other factor as well is that being on the end of three N.R.L. matches a lot of people would just leave the T.V. on if it was League, so in essence it is a captive audience. This is the N.R.L.`s nirvana as well, wall-to-wall League so that people have no inclination to turn over and watch another sport..

I read that Channel 4`s game is due to kick off at 12.30 p.m. I haven`t noticed a lot of complaints about that, but whether that could become a weekly fixture I don`t know. Would the heat or ability to be able to get people to the game be a problem.

Foxtel pay the N.R.L. ~$250m (135m pound) or about $1.2m Oz (643K pound)  per game for roughly around 210 games per year. Even if the RFL could sell a game a week at that timeslot even for half that price ~320k pound/game for the 26 weekends/matches during the period outlined in the first paragraph we`re talking about ~8m pound. 

I`ve chosen that figure just to give a rough idea of the numbers involved, at what point below that where it becomes not worth it would have to be calculated and of course this may only take place with the co-operation of Sky and Channel4.

Either way I reckon a `SuperLeague` match of the round - it could be marketed that way - would pull respectable ratings over here as part of Foxtel`s regular Super Saturday offering.

Would be interested to hear opinions.

 

 

 

[George Watt]

7 minutes ago, George Watt said:

Would this work in Qld. which does not adjust it's clocks?(curtains may fade and milk could go sour!!)

 

[ghost crayfish]

Daylight savings isn't really a factor as it's a summer thing. And for the brief period when it is a factor, super league would kick off at the better prime time slot of 8.30 in qld.

Edited December 8, 2021 by ghost crayfish

[Dunbar]

19 hours ago, The Rocket said:

Would the heat or ability to be able to get people to the game be a problem.

I am not sure about all of the logistics of your plan but I can confirm that heat would absolutely not be a problem for the UK games.

Edited December 8, 2021 by Dunbar

[Scubby]

5 hours ago, Adelaide Tiger said:

If, and it’s a massive if, those at Channel 4 factored in selling the game to Foxtel as part of a long term plan they they should be bestowed with a Blue Peter badge!

But it may have been suggested to them as a sweetener in the investment. Not implausible. 

[The Rocket]

11 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

I am not sure about all of the logistics of your plan but I can confirm that heat would absolutely not be a problem for the UK games.

There would be so much to work through here and so many different permutations given the number of broadcasters potentially involved. I think a good place to start would be for the RFL/SuperLeague to approach Foxtel  and see a) if they`re interested b) what they would be interested in c) how much money could we be talking about. One thing for sure they would want a match every week.

If Foxtel say straight up they are only interested in first choice there is going to be a problem with Sky. Then it comes down to how much would pay for first choice or alternatively how much would they pay for second choice.  As you could imagine it could all be quite convoluted, I suppose that`s why people pay to have broadcast rights negotiated for them.

But just speaking off the top of my head from our end. The 9.30 p.m. slot is vacant, it`s still relatively early in the night, they`ve got ~400 000 watching each match between 3.30 p.m. to 9.30 p.m. on either Foxtel or Kayo and an English Super League game, especially given there is a whole different vibe ( for the want of a better word  ) and is a credible first division Rugby League competition could slot into that 9.30.p.m. space and not disrupt the viewing too much. And of course it would be live as well and people want live sport.

I mentioned the heat and crowds from your end because I wanted to put an element of realism into it before we started getting too carried away. Would the clubs be up for it. I didn`t know whether there would be any number of other obstacles, certainly C4 playing their match so early in the day didn`t seem to raise too many objections.

Couple of other things, Catalans once a month/fortnight at home with Pearce, Napa, I`d guarantee would be a safe bet and wouldn`t that WCC make invaluable pre-season promotion if they bloody held it.

 

[ghost crayfish]

It'll be interesting to see who ends up with the rlwc rights in Australia. If fox get at least some of it, they might have some interest in using some prime time Saturday night superleague to help promote it. I think fox league could have a big impact in regenerating interest in the international game here, simply by paying a bit more attention to the English game, showing classic test matches etc. Itd be great end easily done to have a panel show about superleague, which respectfully talked up English and French players.

[Gomersall]

On 07/12/2021 at 13:22, The Rocket said:

As of around the end of March/beginning of April next year when your daylight savings begins and ours ends a 12.30 p.m. game out of England or  1.30 p.m. game out of France could be beamed into Australia at 9.30 p.m. This would last until the beginning of October when our clocks go forward again and you and France go back i.e. end of daylight savings. A period of around 26 weeks.

Foxtel`s NRL Super Saturday of League has long been one of its` prized viewing time slots with a 3.30p.m. 5.30p.m and 7.30p.m. games. Having a 9.30 p.m. game has often been considered the final piece of the puzzle, in fact one of the main arguments for a team in Perth has been the value to Foxtel of filling that timeslot.

I`d bet that a high profile game beamed into Australia would rate very well, teams like Catalans which have been getting a lot of media coverage in Oz due to high profile Aussie signings I`d bet would rate especially well. The other factor as well is that being on the end of three N.R.L. matches a lot of people would just leave the T.V. on if it was League, so in essence it is a captive audience. This is the N.R.L.`s nirvana as well, wall-to-wall League so that people have no inclination to turn over and watch another sport..

I read that Channel 4`s game is due to kick off at 12.30 p.m. I haven`t noticed a lot of complaints about that, but whether that could become a weekly fixture I don`t know. Would the heat or ability to be able to get people to the game be a problem.

Foxtel pay the N.R.L. ~$250m (135m pound) or about $1.2m Oz (643K pound)  per game for roughly around 210 games per year. Even if the RFL could sell a game a week at that timeslot even for half that price ~320k pound/game for the 26 weekends/matches during the period outlined in the first paragraph we`re talking about ~8m pound. 

I`ve chosen that figure just to give a rough idea of the numbers involved, at what point below that where it becomes not worth it would have to be calculated and of course this may only take place with the co-operation of Sky and Channel4.

Either way I reckon a `SuperLeague` match of the round - it could be marketed that way - would pull respectable ratings over here as part of Foxtel`s regular Super Saturday offering.

Would be interested to hear opinions.

 

 

Daylight saving time 2022 in United Kingdom will begin at 01:00 on

Sunday

27 March

and ends at 02:00 on

Sunday

30 October

All times are in United Kingdom Time.

Edited December 9, 2021 by Gomersall

[Big Picture]

On 07/12/2021 at 08:22, The Rocket said:

As of around the end of March/beginning of April next year when your daylight savings begins and ours ends a 12.30 p.m. game out of England or  1.30 p.m. game out of France could be beamed into Australia at 9.30 p.m. This would last until the beginning of October when our clocks go forward again and you and France go back i.e. end of daylight savings. A period of around 26 weeks.

Foxtel`s NRL Super Saturday of League has long been one of its` prized viewing time slots with a 3.30p.m. 5.30p.m and 7.30p.m. games. Having a 9.30 p.m. game has often been considered the final piece of the puzzle, in fact one of the main arguments for a team in Perth has been the value to Foxtel of filling that timeslot.

I`d bet that a high profile game beamed into Australia would rate very well, teams like Catalans which have been getting a lot of media coverage in Oz due to high profile Aussie signings I`d bet would rate especially well. The other factor as well is that being on the end of three N.R.L. matches a lot of people would just leave the T.V. on if it was League, so in essence it is a captive audience. This is the N.R.L.`s nirvana as well, wall-to-wall League so that people have no inclination to turn over and watch another sport..

I read that Channel 4`s game is due to kick off at 12.30 p.m. I haven`t noticed a lot of complaints about that, but whether that could become a weekly fixture I don`t know. Would the heat or ability to be able to get people to the game be a problem.

Foxtel pay the N.R.L. ~$250m (135m pound) or about $1.2m Oz (643K pound)  per game for roughly around 210 games per year. Even if the RFL could sell a game a week at that timeslot even for half that price ~320k pound/game for the 26 weekends/matches during the period outlined in the first paragraph we`re talking about ~8m pound. 

I`ve chosen that figure just to give a rough idea of the numbers involved, at what point below that where it becomes not worth it would have to be calculated and of course this may only take place with the co-operation of Sky and Channel4.

Either way I reckon a `SuperLeague` match of the round - it could be marketed that way - would pull respectable ratings over here as part of Foxtel`s regular Super Saturday offering.

Would be interested to hear opinions.

There's just one hitch in all that: you overlooked that Australia is ahead of the UK, not behind.  Thus 12:30 PM Saturday in the UK will be 9:30 PM Sunday in Australia, not 9:30 PM Saturday.

How does that change things, if any?

[Anita Bath]

Something wrong there, Australia is not more than 24 hours ahead of UK, no matter which bit you are in.

[mrfranco]

28 minutes ago, Big Picture said:

There's just one hitch in all that: you overlooked that Australia is ahead of the UK, not behind.  Thus 12:30 PM Saturday in the UK will be 9:30 PM Sunday in Australia, not 9:30 PM Saturday.

How does that change things, if any?

Nope.

[Tommygilf]

1 hour ago, Big Picture said:

There's just one hitch in all that: you overlooked that Australia is ahead of the UK, not behind.  Thus 12:30 PM Saturday in the UK will be 9:30 PM Sunday in Australia, not 9:30 PM Saturday.

How does that change things, if any?

Are you sure about that?

[Big Picture]

2 hours ago, Tommygilf said:

Are you sure about that?

Sorry my mistake.

[GUBRATS]

1 hour ago, Big Picture said:

Sorry my mistake.

Always thought you were on a different planet to the rest of us

[Black Country Wire]

On 08/12/2021 at 03:05, Adelaide Tiger said:

If, and it’s a massive if, those at Channel 4 factored in selling the game to Foxtel as part of a long term plan they they should be bestowed with a Blue Peter badge!

It would be the sort of foresight not normally seen in RL circles!

[Dunbar]

On 09/12/2021 at 11:44, Anita Bath said:

Australia is not more than 24 hours ahead of UK

About 40 years behind.

[Anita Bath]

Well that 12.30 pm slot is certainly not prime time for UK TV audiences…trying to avoid a clash with the ponies?

maybe the plan has been to hit prime time in Australia.

[Damien]

21 minutes ago, Anita Bath said:

Well that 12.30 pm slot is certainly not prime time for UK TV audiences…trying to avoid a clash with the ponies?

maybe the plan has been to hit prime time in Australia.

Its been driven by Channel 4 who specifically said they like 12.30 on Saturday. That is why the first 3 games are at that time but it may change depending on their schedules.

[Copa]

When News Corp Australia finally launches their wagering company, FOX Bet, they’ll be wanting content like this.