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Seven secures EJ Whitten Legends Game from Nine

Not a great week for AFL on Nine, now losing broadcast rights to charity match after 20 years.

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It hasn’t been a great week for AFL on Nine.

Now word comes through that Seven has secured the rights to the EJ Whitten Legends Game.

Nine said in a statement, “After a 20-year relationship with the EJ Whitten Foundation, through the support and the development of the EJ Whitten Legends Match, the Nine Network is extremely disappointed to hear that the foundation has decided to partner with another network in 2016 and beyond. We wish them all the best in their future fundraising endeavours.”

Fairfax Media reports the AFL intervened in negotiations to assist Seven, which is the broadcast partner of the League.

Amid reports the event may collapse in a legal dispute, Nine had planned to rebrand the game as The Footy Show All-Stars match, raising funds for the EJ Whitten Foundation and the Shane Warne Foundation, airing on both Nine and Foxtel. Warne reportedly told Nine he was happy for funds to go to the EJ Whitten Foundation, shortly before joining I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here.

Seven has agreed to a five-year deal, supporting a charity designed to raise awareness for prostate cancer research.

The AFL has now scheduled the match on Friday, September 2 at Etihad Stadium.

9 Responses

  1. Yes, a bad week for AFL on Nine. The Footy Show is in big trouble after losing its main host. My suggestion is to be bold and get Shane Warne to host it. He has been awesome on IACGMOOH. He has hosted his own tonight show, has played for St Kilda Reserves and is a good mate of Sams.

  2. The AFL has now scheduled the match on Friday, September 2 at Etihad Stadium.

    Since all teams now have a bye that weekend, the AFL needed to find something to keep the game front and centre. The AFL had flagged hosting a number of events that week, to that end.

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