Pay-television broadcaster Fox Sports has sealed a domestic rights deal with the Australian National Basketball League.
The deal will run for five years, from 2015-16 to 2019-20. The Herald Sun newspaper reported the agreement will be reviewed after the first year. Fox Sports will show live coverage of every game in high definition.
In May, Larry Kestelman, founder of internet service provider Dodo, acquired a controlling interest in the NBL through a A$6m (€4.2m/$4.8m) investment from his company LK Group.
The 2015-16 NBL season commences in October and was without a broadcast partner after a contract with commercial broadcaster Ten ended at the conclusion of the 2014-15 season. The league engaged media-rights consultant Shane Mattiske to help broker a deal.
“The potential for our league to partner with other basketball leagues around the world, particularly in Asia, but also in the United States and across Europe, is of significant importance; it is what differentiates us from so many of the other front line sports in Australia and it opens up a number of growth opportunities,” Kestelman said.
“We are already in direct communication with the (North American) NBA and well on the way to building bridges with both the Chinese and Philippines basketball leagues with a view to working closely with them to grow the game and capitalise on its popularity in our region.”