
Football fans will soon be able to watch the Premier League on free-to-air television again, with Channel Nine set to launch primetime coverage of the competition.
For the first time since SBS aired matches in 2019, the Premier League will be back on Australian FTA screens, starting with Aston Villa v Newcastle United on Saturday, 16 August, at 9:30pm.
As confirmed by Daany Saeed on X, Nine will air one game from the first three weeks on FTA, all on Saturday nights, per Capital Brief.
There is no confirmation of any more games being shown on free-to-air outside of the first three gameweeks.
The move comes after Nine secured the Australian broadcast rights to the Premier League and FA Cup from Optus Sport in a deal announced on 30 June.
All matches will be streamed on Nine’s subscription platform Stan Sport, which will exclusively carry every game of the 2025–26 season, with some fixtures available in 4K ultra-high definition, a first for Premier League coverage in Australia.
Nine plans to air select matches in primetime on its free-to-air channel as part of a push to promote Stan Sport’s coverage. The agreement also includes rights to the UEFA Women’s Euro, Japan’s J.League and the United States’ National Women’s Soccer League.
Nine chief executive Matt Stanton spoke about the huge difference this will make for Australians watching football.
“This marks a step change in Nine’s digital growth strategy,” he said via press release.
“The Premier League is the most watched football league on the planet, and alongside the Emirates FA Cup, this acquisition reinforces Nine’s position as the home of sport in Australia.
“We are proud to deliver these iconic competitions to Australian audiences through Stan Sport. The full power of Nine will be activated to bring new attention and energy to the Premier League and Emirates FA Cup.
“With more than 20 million Australians engaging with Nine’s platforms every month, we have an unrivalled ability to generate excitement at scale, drive audience growth and deliver meaningful commercial outcomes for our partners.”
For Australian football fans, this marks a long-awaited return of the Premier League to free-to-air TV, offering easier access to some of the world’s best football.
With Nine’s primetime coverage and Stan Sport’s full-season streaming, the game is set to reach more fans than ever before by also having the European competitions under the same subscription.