The television coverage of the A-League Men has been relegated by broadcast partner Network Ten to one of its junior stations but will receive a boost with a doubling of games on free-to-air as part of a renegotiated arrangement.
Rather than the network's main Channel 10 outlet, 10 Bold will show two fixtures -- up from just one on Saturday night last season -- as part of the reworked deal.
Those games will be played at 7:45 p.m. on Saturdays and 3 p.m. on Sunday afternoons and will be shorn of the disruptive ad breaks which drew criticism from football fans.
- Subscribe to ESPN AU/NZ's football podcasts
- The Far Post | The National Curriculum | More
The A-League Women, which had enjoyed one game per week on 10 Bold, will be moved entirely to Network Ten's free streaming service, 10 Play.
The remaining A-League Men fixtures will be shown on the network's subscription streaming platform, Paramount+, which suffered from an array of technical issues in the sport's first year of a $200 million five-year partnership with the Australian Professional Leagues.
Paramount+ will continue to host highlights and replays of matches in full, with APL bosses hopeful the format will catch up with rival services such as Stan and Kayo, who allow replay and pause functions.
"This season's broadcast schedule is designed to deliver more football to more Australian homes with 26 additional men's games on 10 Bold and almost 100 women's games on 10 Play," said APL chief executive Danny Townsend.
"Football fans will know exactly where and when they will be able to watch A-Leagues football, week in and week out."
The A-League Men starts on Oct. 7 with a Grand Final rematch between Western United and Melbourne City before a month-long break for the World Cup in Qatar between Nov. 13 and Dec. 9.
