Episode 1713: What Sports Can Survive Without Free-To-Air Coverage – And Is Six Nations Rugby Going To Be The Next Sports Organisation To Take That Gamble

Six Nations rugby on free-to-air television has been part of the sporting landscape for all of our lives. For the last 15 years, Ireland games in the competition have routinely challenged Irish soccer internationals and the All-Ireland finals as the most-watched sporting events of the year.

But is that all about to change – can the Six Nations survive if the tournament broadcast rights were sold to a paid-for subscription channel?

This would be a bad idea. Ironically, the 6 Nations is one of the few competitions to have historically displayed some understanding of the trade off between reach and £££ in selling its broadcast rights. https://t.co/m1yztTZIez

— Owen Gibson (@owen_g) March 2, 2020

After we thrash out how exactly one should measure the success or otherwise of selling broadcasting rights to the highest bidder, we talk to Jarrod Kimber, a cricket journalist and broadcaster about the lessons we can learn from what happened to cricket in England over the last 15 years.

Plus there’s Peter Clohessy, the self-isolating Mako Vunipola, private equity firms, Troy Deeney, the future of the Olympics in Tokyo, and the ear-worm that’s even ear-wormier than Timo Werner.

England prop Mako Vunipola has gone into self-isolation as a coronavirus precaution.

Full story https://t.co/zkIg34wCfl #bbcrugby #coronavirusuk #SixNations pic.twitter.com/AtuE4FB0rk

— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) March 3, 2020

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???? Mick McCarthy’s golden handcuffs, Stephen Kenny’s media handcuffs

????Troy Deeney picks on the runt of the Liverpool litter

???? One-million Irish morons https://t.co/MK4p0UsEOn pic.twitter.com/Jq7VhoPQIY

— Second Captains (@SecondCaptains) March 2, 2020

With Maria Sharapova’s tennis career coming to an end we chat to @caitlin_thomps about why Sharapova’s colleagues viewed her the way they did, her ban for using PED meldonium, and Caitlin’s own experience of using meldonium on the amateur circuithttps://t.co/6Yo2lQnBM5 pic.twitter.com/lN1T4JihFS

— Second Captains (@SecondCaptains) February 28, 2020

Man City have finally secured the massive European victory they’ve been chasing since the Abu Dhabi takeover.

The question is, can they go all the way to Istanbul?

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— Second Captains (@SecondCaptains) February 27, 2020