Just to rub salt into the wounds of International fans of our game - Channel Ten in Australia is showing LIVE FREE TO AIR coverage of the NFL games. It is being shown on their Full High Definition (1080p) Channel and other international sports have also been shown recently- This is to compete with PAY TV CHANNEL FOXTEL. Crazy world we live in - All due respect to NFL but it has a largely curiosity factor/following only in Australia. It is played here but is viewed as expensive to get all of the kit.
And yet, those who are here still can't see live AFL games on free-to-air. Even during the finals (and yes, I'm looking at you, Channel Seven). It's a travesty. If there's any comparison to be made to the NFL, that's the way to do the TV games. Live. That's what our fans want.
Is the main attraction of the NFL broadcasts the game itself, or Messrs. Rocca, Graham, McBriar, et al?
Depends on which games Ten-HD has access to -- although they'd be smart to try and be top-heavy on games involving the Jets, Eagles and Cowboys, if they're going to market it to an Australian audience.
Here is the NFL Schedule for this week-- Perth times given - +8 GMT Sunday Sep 7 - 3.00 am - New England Patriots V Kansas City Chiefs Monday Sep 8 - 10.00 am - Indianapolis Colts v Chicago Bears Tuesday Sep 9 - 9.00am - Green Bay Packers (Now there`s a famous team) v Minnesota Vikings. The Packers are known just about everywhere and are legends of the NFL. We watched a bit of the Packers match. Many more games are scheduled it appears.
On another thread we posted that Setanta had signed up Cox Cable to cover AFL on its networks around the US. This is the first major US Cable company (Ranked 3rd Cable Coy in the US?) to do so and can only eventually bring in more support for the game. Aussie Rules fans are encouraged to contact their local Cox office to push for the coverage in their area. Here is link to Cox on Wikipedia which lists the areas in the US where they have coverage---- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cox_Communications Here is link to original article -Courtesy of AFANA.COM ------ http://www.afana.com/drupal5/news/2008/10/10/setanta_gains_first_major_cable_contract-1277