A-Leagues secure last minute NEP deal for production partner

The A-Leagues have had an interesting past week, to say the least – as the league’s production partner for live broadcasts, Global Advance, was placed into voluntary administration.

This past weekend, the league managed to secure a last minute deal with international broadcasting and media services group NEP who will cover the remainder of the 2024 season.

The league just got the deal done in time, hours before Central Coast Mariners played Western United in an A-League Women clash and they were able to avoid an embarrassing Easter Thursday blackout.

The A-Leagues currently are understood to pay $12 million to Global Advance for production of all men’s and women’s games, the league is hoping to recuperate close to $1 million from Global Advance but it may be difficult.

Global Advance was established in 2020, its first major partner was the A-Leagues following the competitions’ split from long-term broadcaster Fox Sports.

Until they were placed onto voluntary administration, they had broadcasted every Men’s and Women’s match on Network Ten and its streaming partner Paramount.

The APL released a damning statement last Wednesday night that outlined the lack of communication from Global Advance regarding their financial situation.

“We are disappointed in the manner in which this has come to our attention, and the risk this has placed on our fan, player, club, broadcast and commercial commitments,” the APL said in a statement.

“We have been let down and will be working with the administrators to recoup monies owing to APL.

“Through a lot of hard work by a new production company, Ten-Paramount, and our team, we are close to finalising an agreement and are confident all matches will be broadcast, starting tomorrow.

“There are many challenges that such a short timeframe presents, but we are working through this urgently with all of our stakeholders, and we thank the production company for their co-operation, flexibility and expertise at such short notice.”

However, Said Jahani of Global Advance’s administrators Grant Thornton reiterated that there was immediate contact with the A-Leagues.

“We have immediately commenced a dialogue with the Australian Professional Leagues at the most senior levels to determine whether television coverage for all A-League men’s and women’s games this weekend can continue to be provided. he said in a statement

“At this stage, it remains uncertain as to whether this will be possible.”

It hasn’t quite been all smooth sailing to kick off the NEP era of broadcasting, with the cameraman being the butt of all jokes online after showing his phone notes to direct a message towards his director in the huge game between Sydney FC and Melbourne Victory in the Liberty A-League that had title implications for the Sky Blues.

It will be interesting to see how the APL can salvage this streaming mishap and produce some quality broadcasts as the finals approach for both competitions.

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Football Victoria roll out PlayFootball 2.0 for 2025

Football Victoria and Cleaning Melbourne

Football Victoria has launched PlayFootball v2.0, delivering a comprehensive upgrade to its national registration platform for clubs, players and referees nationwide in 2025.

The modernised system introduces significant improvements, headlined by a complete interface overhaul prioritising accessibility and efficiency for all stakeholders.

The platform’s user-centric design promises to streamline administrative processes across all levels of the sport.

Key enhancements to PlayFootball 2.0 will allow for a modern player and official identification system that will include a sophisticated reporting module.

A notable addition is the integrated Working with Children Check workflow, reinforcing Football Australia’s commitment to child safety protocols.

Football Victoria is spearheading the transition by offering comprehensive training programmes, with both face-to-face and virtual sessions available to club administrators and association officials.

These sessions have been specifically designed to ensure optimal utilisation of the platform’s enhanced capabilities.

Football Victoria Chief Executive Officer Chris Pehlivanis has spoken on this new update and how they see it as crucial for enhancing the footballing experience for participants and clubs.

“We are looking forward to participants having a streamlined registration process while simplifying administration for our Clubs from 2025. FV will work closely with Clubs to ensure they are well supported through the transition and familiar with the benefits of the new system,” he said via press release.

A crucial update to the registration process will require participants to settle both Football Australia and Football Victoria Governing Body Regulation Fees at the point of registration through PlayFootball v2.0.

To help participants adjust to the change, however, PlayFootball is offering 4 different payment models:

  • All Fees Upfront: Club and Regulation fees paid online at the point of registration
  • Regulation Fees Upfront: FA and FV fees paid online at the point of registration
  • Scheduled Payment: FA, FV, Association and the first portion (¼) of the club fee is paid online at the point of registration
  • Subsidised Payment: Club subsidises payment and pays for Governing Body fees on the participant’s behalf at the point of registration

Player eligibility is rewarded upon the successful payment of these governing body fees.

This new program was tested by inviting four Associations, including 34 Clubs and 4,839 players to attend feedback sessions with FV and FA and beta test the new platform.

The invitation for Clubs to explore the What’s Changing Playbook has opened and for further information on all the changes coming to PlayFootball v2.0.

The platform’s updated rollout represents a significant milestone in Football Australia’s ongoing digitalisation strategy, aimed at reducing administrative burden whilst improving service delivery across the football community.

Melbourne Victory joins forces with RUBIX

Melbourne Victory has confirmed RUBIX will continue to operate as the club’s official data partner for the 2024/25 season. The collaboration follows a prosperous first year between the club and RUBIX.

RUBIX is a prominent Melbourne based data company, with offices across Australia and the US. The company has worked for high profile clients such as the Victorian State Government, Australia Post, Telstra and more.

RUBIX has successfully delivered over 350 projects for leading Top 50 companies, rapidly expanding FinTech and software firms.

The company was also a back-to-back SmartCompany award winner in 2022 and 2021 and earned a CRN Fast50 award in 2020.

RUBIX will aide Melbourne Victory’s growth and fan engagement strategies using the company’s knowledge in statistics, data technology, analysis, and artificial intelligence.

Melbourne Victory Managing Director, Caroline Carnegie, warmly welcomed RUBIX via press release.

“We’re thrilled to have RUBIX on board as the Club’s Official Data Partner for a second season,” she said.

“Their world-leading solutions have already offered incredible insights across our operations, and we’re excited to leverage their tools further to help Melbourne Victory grow and engage more deeply with our fans and community.”

Head of Marketing and Brand at RUBIX, Kathryn Smith, also expressed her eagerness for the collaboration.

“This partnership with Melbourne Victory continues to be a fantastic opportunity for us to support one of Melbourne’s most iconic sporting teams with data-driven insights and technology,” she said via press release.

“We look forward to using our innovative solutions to help the Club drive growth, enhance fan engagement, and deliver a richer experience for supporters.”

Together, Melbourne Victory and RUBIX will continue to analyse and adopt new initiatives to improve experiences for fans and drive the club further then ever before.

Through the collaboration, Melbourne Victory will hope to build off of a successful 2023/2024 season, which saw the club reach the A-League Men’s Grand Final.

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