Why did this happen?  Well, rewind a few years. 

When Abbott led the Coalition to victory in the 2013 federal election, he promised not to cut funding to the ABC and SBS.  But, by the time the 2014 budget came around the following May, he had changed his mind and, for two consecutive years, SBS boss Michael Ebeid told Senate estimates hearings the broadcaster's World Cup coverage could be at risk thanks to reduced funding. 

A huge shake-up

SBS had in 2011 clinched a deal with world governing body FIFA to extend its existing broadcast contract for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, having shown each tournament in its entirety since 1990. 

The deals were reportedly for about $20 million for Russia this year and another $20 million for Qatar in 2022, up from about $30 million combined for the 2014, 2010, 2006 and 2002 tournaments. 

Australia was valiant in its 2-1 defeat to France.  DAVID VINCENT

But by late 2015, the soccer broadcasting market in Australia was to get a huge shake-up when Optus shocked all and sundry with a knock-out bid for English Premier league rights.  The telco agreed to shell out about $63 million annually for rights from the 2016-17 season onwards, a huge increase on the $20 million pay TV network Fox Sports had been paying. 

At the same time, SBS would have been looking for savings across the channel and the $20 million it was paying for the World Cup must have presented an opportunity. 


So it emerged in May 2016 when Optus and SBS announced they had clinched a deal for Optus to sub-licence one EPL match a week to SBS, who in return would share the World Cup coverage with the telco. 

It is a deal for which The Australian Financial Review understands Optus is paying SBS about $8 million, meaning the public broadcaster found some vital savings, enabling it to afford continuing with its coverage of the Tour de France cycling race – which begins this year on July 7 – as well as gaining some rights to the French Open and US Open tennis tournaments. 

Criticism has been vitriolic

It is not one without some controversy, and some viewers are angry with the quality of the Optus EPL coverage and the technological issues it had in the early days of its deal.  Others are upset they they will have to pay money to watch an entire World Cup that was previously free.  Social media criticism of Optus this weekend was vitriolic. 

But SBS is at least in a position where it still is able to show all Socceroos matches, another match each day and the business end of the tournament including both semi-finals and the final from Moscow in the early hours of July 12. 

The public broadcaster has also had a good run with its EPL coverage, gaining the rights to several high-rating games that have kicked off before midnight in Australia's eastern states on Saturday evenings. 

SBS and Optus have jointly built an app for the World Cup and also a joint sales and commercial model for the tournament. 

Ratings bonanza


The two organisations will also share the rights to next year's Women's World Cup in France, which may end up being a ratings bonanza if the highly fancied Matildas embark on a run deep into the tournament. 

There is also an option for both parties to share the rights to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and for the agreement for the EPL rights to be extended past 2019, with Optus recently clinching a deal to continue its current deal through to 2022. 

Optus is also on the verge of clinching a deal to show the 2020 European soccer championships and is in contention to win the rights to the European Champions League, of which pay TV operator BeIN Sports has shared some matches with SBS in the past few years. 

Presumably, Optus could again partner with SBS for those other rights in the future and potentially the two could team up for future World Cup bids. 

If the timeline of the last deal is followed, the rights for the 2026 tournament that will be shared between the United States, Mexico and Canada may be on the market in 2019.