Nine’s Wide World of Sports returns in 2019 with its biggest year of live coverage yet, firmly positioning Nine as the only home of exclusive, premium, free-to-air sport in Australia.
In a year which has seen transformative changes in the sports rights landscape, Nine’s Director of Sport, Tom Malone, used the Nine Upfront event to talk about the acquisition of tennis and the strategic rationale and power of Nine’s cross-platform suite of properties – tennis, rugby league, cricket, netball, basketball and golf.
“It has been a massive year for sports broadcasting in Australia, driven by Nine’s decision to go after the tennis,” Malone said. “That change was driven by our strategic positioning of Nine in the new media landscape and we knew we had to be the home of the biggest sport and the best sport – exclusively broadcast by Wide World of Sports.
“Make no mistake, Nine was the protagonist in the biggest shake-up of sports rights in 40 years, and key to that was acquiring all rights across all platforms to service an audience that wants to watch things anytime and anywhere.”
In January 2019, Nine will host its first Australian Open, the start of a six-year deal with Tennis Australia, featuring the greatest lineup of tennis commentators and experts ever seen on Australian TV, including John McEnroe, Jim Courier and Lleyton Hewitt.
Combined with the Sydney International, Brisbane International and Hopman Cup tournaments, summer will see the likes of Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic lighting up screens on Nine.
The National Rugby League returns with a bang in 2019 as the star-studded Sydney Roosters defend their crown after defeating the Melbourne Storm in the 2018 NRL Telstra Premiership Grand Final.
“The Voice” of rugby league, Ray “Rabs” Warren, returns alongside the best commentary lineup in the game: Phil Gould, Wally Lewis, Peter Sterling, Paul Vautin, Andrew Johns, Darren Lockyer, Brad Fittler, Ruan Sims and Allana Ferguson.
Joining them next season are today’s modern greats, in the form of future Immortal Johnathan Thurston, the greatest fullback of all time, Billy Slater, and powerhouse Queensland Maroons and Australian forward, Sam Thaiday.
Following its success this year, fans will again be able to stream every NRL game available on Nine on 9Now – on their favourite supported device, live or on demand, with exclusive features such as Spidercam and Referee Cam.
Holden State of Origin makes its explosive return as the momentum shifts back to the new-look New South Wales Blues who ended Queensland’s winning reign in 2018. Next year the greatest rivalry in Australian sport visits the west coast for the first time when the Blues and Maroons do battle at Perth’s cutting-edge new Optus Stadium, in addition to their clashes in Sydney and Brisbane.
With three of the most watched programs of the year, State of Origin in 2018 continued the dominant viewing trend for the series and was watched by nearly ten million people.
Nine is also home to the biggest cricket matches in 2019, bringing viewers The Ashes series from England, exclusively live during Australian prime time. All eyes will be on 25 nights of prime-time cricket, with former captain Steve Smith and vice-captain David Warner eligible for test match selection once more in one of international sport’s longest running and fiercest rivalries.
Before The Ashes, Australia will campaign in the 2019 Cricket World Cup where the top ten nations face off in One-Day Internationals to crown the winner of the biggest prize in cricket.
Golf returns to Nine next month, with the World Cup of Golf live from Melbourne. Following this, in April, The Masters at Augusta showcases the best golfers in the world, including Tiger Woods and Australian stars Jason Day, Adam Scott, Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith.
Suncorp Super Netball, the best netball competition in the world, returns to Nine in 2019 following its most successful season to date. Australian netball Hall of Famer, Liz Ellis, spearheads Nine’s coverage of two live games per week, with all games available on 9Now.
The closely contested Constellation Cup between Australia and New Zealand will also return in October 2019.
Nine recently launched a partnership with the National Basketball League, which puts two top games per week live on Nine, as well as having every game of the 2018-19 season available for streaming either live or on-demand on 9Now.
This season sees NBA superstar Andrew Bogut join the Sydney Kings as the highest profile signing in the League’s history, and record crowds are expected for the 41st season of what is one of the premier basketball competitions in the world.
Nine’s unmatched sports coverage features Australia’s leading sporting analysts and commentary teams, from the legendary Ray Warren and Bill Lawry to the opinions of Phil Gould and Mark Taylor, and the strategic minds of Liz Ellis and Andrew Johns, all delivering unprecedented access and insight into the sports we love.
Fans can enjoy all the action by joining more than three million followers across the Wide World of Sportssocial media channels, or on 9Now – anytime, anywhere.
AUSTRALIAN OPEN TENNIS
Nine’s new six-year deal with Tennis Australia is in play in 2019 when the Australian Open takes place from January 14 to 27, as the biggest stars in the game converge on Melbourne Park.
Nine’s coverage will be presented by the greatest lineup of tennis experts and commentators ever seen on Australian TV, including the legendary John McEnroe – winner of three Wimbledons and four US Opens – and Jim Courier, a former world No.1 and two-time victor at the Australian Open. Joining them will be Australia’s former world No.1 singles player, Lleyton Hewitt, and former Australian doubles world No.1, Todd Woodbridge, alongside Sam Smith, Jelena Dokic, Alicia Molik, Sam Groth, and Dylan Alcott.
Preceding this, Nine brings you the Hopman Cup (December 29-January 5), Brisbane International (December 30-January 6) and Sydney International (January 6-12), which will include superstars such as Roger Federer and Serena Williams in the official lead-up tournaments to the Open.
NRL
The 2019 NRL Premiership kicks off in March, and Nine will continue to bring full digital rights to 9Now and Wide World of Sports.com.au, including live streaming, on-demand viewing, short-form clips and highlights, coming straight from broadcast to the digital environment.
In the commentary box “The Voice” of rugby league, Ray “Rabs” Warren, will head up the best commentary team in the game when he is joined by Andrew Johns, Phil Gould, Peter Sterling, Wally Lewis, Ruan Sims, Allana Ferguson, Brad Fittler, Darren Lockyer, James Bracey, Erin Molan, and Mat Thompson.
Nine’s NRL team also includes new faces in the form of future Immortal Johnathan Thurston, the greatest fullback of all time, Billy Slater, and powerhouse Queensland and Australian forward, Sam Thaiday, all adding their insight into the game we love.
Three of the top games in every NRL round will be shown live on Thursday, Friday and Sunday – before Nine adds a fourth, the 7.30pm match on Saturday nights, in the run to the finals.
STATE OF ORIGIN
Consistently among the highest rating television events of the year, State of Origin will be exclusive to Nine – the fierce rivalry between NSW and Queensland, the mate versus mate, State versus State gladiatorial drama.
Following victory for the new-look, resurgent NSW side in 2018, Queensland will be looking to bounce back and reclaim their glory next year.
In 2019, Perth will host an Origin game for the first time in front of up to 60,000 fans at the new state-of-the-art Optus Stadium, on a Sunday night again following last year’s success. Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane and ANZ Stadium in Sydney will host games one and three respectively.
THE NRL SUNDAY FOOTY SHOW
Nine’s rugby league experts will dissect every week of NRL action in 2019 when Erin Molan is joined by Nine’s panel of experts on The NRL Sunday Footy Show, 11.00am to 1.00pm. Fans will get two hours of opinions and discussion on all the latest news from the week of rugby league, and a preview of Sunday’s upcoming game.
SPORTS SUNDAY
Never shy of tackling the biggest issues in sport from across the globe, Sports Sunday is home to the hardest hitting opinions on TV, with host James Bracey and regular panellists such as Liz Ellis and Peter FitzSimons separating fact from fiction in 2019 – who’s right, who’s wrong, and who’s got absolutely no idea.
THE AFL FOOTY SHOW
The AFL Footy Show is home to the biggest stories in the world of AFL, hosted by champions of the game and bringing in-depth discussions on the week in footy, and a whole lot of laughs.
THE AFL SUNDAY FOOTY SHOW
The AFL Sunday Footy Show is compulsory viewing for AFL fans, with Tony Jones delivering the latest news, analysis, and the biggest names in the game.
FOOTY CLASSIFIED
The big names and the agenda-setters lock horns for a provocative look at the AFL as Footy Classifiedcontinues to tackle the topical issues on and off the field.
THE ASHES
A battle that has raged for 137 years, The Ashes returns to its traditional home on Nine on August 1, 2019, with all games live during prime time over 25 days of play between Australia and “The Old Enemy”, England. Marking the first time that superstars Steve Smith and David Warner will be eligible again to play test cricket, all eyes will be on the English summer to see if the Aussies can back up their dominant Ashes win in 2017-18.
CRICKET WORLD CUP
Australia defends its Cricket World Cup crown in 2019, with England and Wales hosting the championship from May 30. After defeating co-hosts New Zealand in the final at a packed MCG in 2015, Australia will join the other nine top cricketing nations in the One-Day International tournament to be played over 46 days, with the hallowed turf of Lord’s the setting for the 2019 final.
WORLD CUP OF GOLF & THE MASTERS
The World Cup of Golf hits Melbourne, November 22-25, with players competing proudly for their country instead of just individual glory, and the biggest purse in Australian golf.
Following this, The Masters returns to Wide World of Sports in 2019, showcasing the best golfers in the world. Local heroes Jason Day, Adam Scott, Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith will be vying for golf’s grandest prize – the prestigious green jacket at Augusta.
SUNCORP SUPER NETBALL
After its most successful season to date, Suncorp Super Netball, the best netball league in the world, returns to Nine for the 2019 season. Australian netball Hall of Famer, Liz Ellis, spearheads Nine’s coverage of two live broadcast games per week, with these and all other games available on 9Now, as the Sunshine Coast Lightning premiers look to set the benchmark for the third year in a row.
CONSTELLATION CUP
The Australian Diamonds will again take on the New Zealand Silver Ferns in the Constellation Cup in October 2019 – the hottest netball rivalry in the world. The Aussies and Kiwis always meet in tightly contested clashes, and this one promises to be another thriller.
NATIONAL BASKETBALL LEAGUE
In the new partnership with the National Basketball League, two of the biggest games a week will go live on Nine, as well as having every game of the 2018-19 season available for streaming on 9Now.
This season sees NBA superstar Andrew Bogut join the Sydney Kings as the highest profile signing ever in the League, and record crowds are expected for the 41st season of what is one of the premier basketball competitions in the world.
