Fri. Apr 4th, 2025

NRL CEO Hits Back at Critics of TV Rights Deal

NRL CEO Dave Smith has hit back at critics of his television rights negotiations saying the NRL wanted to sign an early free-to-air deal placing themselves ahead of time.

Quizzed on the matter by Phil Rothfield on The Daily Telegraph’s NRL podcast, Smith says rugby league is in a perfect position.

“..We are in a very strong position. We deliberately went out to the market two-and-a-half years early so we could test the market properly,” Smith said.

“We have already secured more than $900 million from the free-to-air rights and that is nearly as much as the entire broadcasting rights from the current deal.

“That deal delivers fans four live and free games a week.

“And we still have the pay TV rights to come with more than two years to come to an agreement with a provider.”

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