ESPN retains NFL rights in Australia, New Zealand ahead of Melbourne Game

ESPN, the Disney-owned sports media giant, has again reprised pay-TV rights for American football’s elite NFL in Australia and New Zealand, ensuring continued pay-TV reach across a priority international market.

Through the extension of the long-standing agreement, ESPN will air six live NFL games per gameweek across the 2026 regular season, 108 in total, as well as coverage of every postseason playoff fixture, and the season-ending Super Bowl LXI showpiece on February 15.

ESPN is distributed in Australia and New Zealand by the Disney+ OTT streaming service, as well as DAZN-owned linear network Foxtel and its Kayo Sports streaming service, the Fetch TV internet TV platform, and the Sky NZ pay-TV channel in New Zealand in particular, rounding out a prominent range of carriage options.

For Disney+ specifically, ESPN has also extended its exclusive agreement for the NFL RedZone live broadcast offering, further entrenching itself in the market.

Speaking on the announcement, Kylie Watson-Wheeler, the head of ESPN in the APAC region, said: "ESPN remains the provider of the most comprehensive coverage of the NFL in Australia and New Zealand, including the Super Bowl.

“Building on our long-standing alliance with the NFL that spans more than 30 years in Australia and New Zealand, ESPN serves millions of sports fans locally via the most widely distributed premium sports network across pay TV and streaming."

This broadcast slate will include the NFL’s first match in Australia, which will be staged at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on September 11, with the San Francisco 49ers taking on the Los Angeles Rams.

ESPN will split the rights to that fixture with free-to-air TV’s Seven Network, the Australian commercial network, which last month renewed and expanded its own widespread coverage deal with the league, through which it will now show multiple live games each week.

The NFL claims 8.8 million fans in the Australian market, which is undoubtedly a key driver behind the willingness to stage a game at the 100,000-capacity MCG.

Prominent sponsors of the NFL in Australia ahead of the international fixture include wine brand Y Series, airline flag carrier Qantas, the Visit California tourism board, consumer goods giant Unilever’s condiments brand Hellmann’s, shopping center chain Westfield joined that list, and asset management firm La Trobe Financial.

Most recently, Australian restaurant chain The Sporting Global Bar & Grill was announced as the league’s latest partner in the country.

The Melbourne game comes as the NFL steadily increases its footprint in the region, having launched an APAC academy and flag football initiatives as the sport prepares for its Olympic debut at Los Angeles 2028.

Australia will be the eighth international territory the NFL has played in, with the league having visited the UK (London), Mexico City, Germany (Berlin, Munich, and Frankfurt), Brazil (Sao Paulo), Ireland (Dublin), Canada (Toronto), and Spain (Madrid).

For the 2026 campaign, a record nine international games will be played, including three games in London, and single fixtures in Madrid, Melbourne, Mexico City, Munich, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro (Brazil).

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has been public about his ambition to bring the NFL to as many different territories as possible and has found success in partnership with local sports leagues in these territories, a strategy the league may continue in Australia, thanks to the popularity of rugby in the market.

The NFL has played in Australia once before, a 1999 exhibition game titled the American Bowl in Sydney between the Denver Broncos and the San Diego Chargers.

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