My phone lit up at 2 AM with a screenshot from a broadcast data architect. The graph wasn't tracking a Grand Final—it was tracking a sudden avalanche of searches for a Round 2 footy match.
Sports executives are celebrating a massive spike in Google searches for footy scores. But peek behind the curtain, and this isn't a victory lap for the league—it's a glaring red flag for how we consume the game.
A leaked text message. A $60 million handshake. How the platform that promised to democratise Australian sports is quietly building the most expensive walled garden in television history.
The days of free beer and free footy are dead. As Foxtel pivots to streaming dominance with Kayo, the average punter is paying the price. We analyze the numbers behind the monopoly.
