AUSTRALIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Sven Burchartz and Jessica Bell, Kalus Kenny Intelex
cumstances, improve the sponsor’s corporate image by leveraging the strong reputation and brand of a sporting team or athlete. Sponsors commonly exercise their rights through inte - grated marketing campaigns, digital content, athlete appearances, in-stadium branding, hospitality and promotional events and, subject to privacy and con - sent requirements, through targeted marketing. Attracting Sponsors to Sport Sports rights-holders use sponsors to generate rev - enue for their business through sponsorship fees and attract sponsor investment by offering a range of commercial rights. Traditionally, these rights include the right to use the sports rights-holder’s brand and athlete imagery, branding on athlete kits and at sport - ing events. Sponsorship agreements may also offer customised content featuring athletes and team members, the right to feature on the sports rights- holder’s social media channels and the use of the fan databases for marketing purposes. Rights-holders also rely on audience metrics, broadcast reach, digi - tal engagement statistics and demographic data to demonstrate the commercial value of their platform to potential sponsors. Key Provisions of Sponsorship Agreements in Australia The key provisions in any sponsorship agreement are designed to protect both parties’ brand integrity and ensure clarity around the commercial relationship, and typically include clauses relating to exclusivity, pay - ment terms, sponsor benefits, intellectual property rights, deliverable obligations on the rights-holder, morality and conduct clauses and termination condi - tions. 2.3 Broadcasting Rights Exploiting Broadcasting Rights Traditionally, broadcasters in Australia exploit availa - ble broadcasting rights by selling advertising space on their channels (especially on free-to-air channels) and by other means, including subscription services such as pay-TV (Foxtel) and streaming platforms (Kayo, Stan Sport, Amazon Prime). They may also generate revenue through sponsorship and integration, such as branded segments, in-broadcast advertising and nam -
ing rights, as well as digital and on-demand content. Broadcasters may also license content internationally to sell rights to overseas networks or platforms. Broadcasting rights are among the most valuable rights available to sports rights-holders in Australia. Broadcasters often seek exclusivity in the broad - casting rights to certain sports events because they can exploit those rights to encourage businesses to purchase advertising space on their channels during high-viewership periods. By way of example, in 2025, Supercars entered into a four-year, AUD200 million deal with the Foxtel Group and Seven West Media, securing the live broadcast of all Supercars events on Foxtel/Kayo, including the Repco Supercars Championships, expanding Super - cars’ international presence. The Seven Network will also provide free-to-air coverage for six key rounds. Exclusivity of Broadcasting Rights Broadcasting rights in Australia are often sold on an exclusive basis, meaning that the sale of particular rights to a television channel or provider often pre - cludes their sale to another television company. However, Australia’s anti-siphoning laws require cer - tain events (such as the AFL premiership competition) to be made available free of charge to the general public. Interestingly, in the case of the AFL Grand Final, the match is only broadcast live on a free-to-air television channel, and available on pay-TV on delay. Venue Access and Intellectual Property Rights Broadcasters require venue access licences from event organisers or stadium operators to enter the venue, install equipment and film the event, cover - ing matters such as camera positions, technical infrastructure, staff access, use of captured footage, and compliance with venue rules and safety require - ments. While broadcasters generally own the intellec - tual property in the broadcast (including audiovisual feeds, commentary and graphics), those rights remain subject to restrictions imposed by the sports rights- holder, which typically retains control over official log - os, trade marks and event branding, approval rights over their use in broadcasts, and limited rights to use footage for promotional purposes.
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