SCA and the AFL have announced a new three-year partnership that will see every game, of every round, delivered live to fans on Triple M and LiSTNR throughout the 2025, 2026 and 2027 AFL seasons.

The agreement cements SCA as the go-to destination for AFL fans. LiSTNR and the Triple M network’s radio stations around Australia will deliver more than 850 hours of live match coverage per season. This unparalleled coverage will be enhanced by greater integration of AFL-related content within SCA’s flagship shows and across Triple M and LiSTNR’s digital assets, as well as increased editorial support in key AFL development markets in Sydney, Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

With commentary teams on the ground in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, SCA will deliver unparalleled footy coverage to bring fans closer to the action. Led by an experienced team of footy’s finest voices, the team will provide expert insights, banter and top-tier analysis. Fans can also look forward to unique access to players for pre and post match interviews during the season, establishing a premier destination for footy fans.

SCA continues its commitment to supporting AFLW, with extensive coverage of the competition, including finals, while creating pathways for players off the field. The introduction of an annual AFLW internship will provide invaluable learning opportunities for a player with aspirations of a broadcasting career, furthering SCA’s dedication to elevating women’s football both on and off the air.

SCA CEO John Kelly said: “Southern Cross Austereo is proud to extend our partnership with the AFL, reaffirming SCA’s position as Australia’s leading AFL audio broadcaster. As the season begins tonight, we’re excited to continue delivering the most passionate, insightful, and entertaining footy coverage across Triple M and LiSTNR. Our long-standing relationship with the AFL allows us to bring fans closer to the game they love, and we look forward to another incredible season of footy.”

AFL Executive General Manager of Finance, Clubs and Infrastructure, Matthew Chun, said: “The priority of the AFL was to provide fans with quality content and unrivalled free access to footy across radio platforms. Our radio partners will service more AFL and AFLW fans across the nation than ever before. It is important to us that our fans are able to consume live football all weekend, particularly when they aren’t able to get to a game.

“We want all Australians to have the best possible match experience on any platform of their choice, and we are proud to be partnering with Southern Cross Austereo and thank them for their continued support and commitment to delivering unparalleled content for our fans.”

Triple M holds the top spot as the #1 AFL station in Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, while also building a strong following in the emerging markets of Sydney and Brisbane. With Australia’s most loved game continuing to thrive, this partnership guarantees that AFL fans won’t miss a moment of the action – whether they’re listening at home, on the go, or on LiSTNR.

This agreement showcases SCA’s enduring dedication to connecting fans with the game they love, while paving the way for exciting developments across the AFL and AFLW landscapes.

About Southern Cross Austereo

Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) is one of Australia’s leading media companies and the home of LiSTNR, the Hit and Triple M networks, and regional television stations, reaching more than 95% of the Australian population. The LiSTNR digital audio app hosts a library of free and compelling digital audio content available anytime, anywhere. It houses SCA’s 104 FM, AM, and DAB+ radio stations, including AFL, NRL, and international cricket coverage, 43 music genre stations, and over 700 podcasts from leading Australian and global creators, plus local news and information. With more than two million signed-in users, LiSTNR has something to entertain, inform, and inspire all Australians and helps advertisers connect with highly engaged, addressable audiences. The LiSTNR digital audio sales network reaches an estimated eight million people each month.

SCA owns 104 radio stations across FM, AM, and DAB+ under the Triple M and Hit network brands and provides national sales representation for 49 regional radio stations, with 8.71 million listeners across the Hit and Triple M networks. SCA also provides Australian sales representation for global open audio platform SoundCloud and Sonos Radio.

www.southerncrossaustereo.com.au.

Australia’s favourite podcast duo, LiSTNR’s Hamish & Andy, are officially back, after an exhausting summer of lobbying against the government-mandated podcast break. Their highly anticipated first episode of 2025 is packed with plenty of gusto, high excitement, and laugh-out-loud moments.

Now in their 22nd year with Southern Cross Austereo and LiSTNR, Hamish & Andy continue to dominate the podcasting world, with their signature humour and quick wit earning them the #1 spot on the Australian Podcast Ranker a record 31 times.* Joining Hamish & Andy is their long-time sidekick and show anchor, Jack Post.

Hamish & Andy kick off the season fresh from a very important business trip to New York where the boys have been busy launching their new pub ‘Old Mates’. Expect plenty of hilarious stories from the pub’s opening night, and celebrity spotting in NY (though Hamish’s celebrity spotting has been flagged ‘questionable’) and the signature Hamish & Andy antics listeners love from their first episode.

Hamish Blake and Andy Lee said: “We’ve been waiting in the wings, champing at the bit for our government-mandated break to be over; thankfully, this one felt lightning quick. We’re stoked to enter the eighth year of the Hamish & Andy podcast, and we promise plenty of gusto in 2025.”

LiSTNR Original Podcasts Head of Entertainment and Culture, Sam Cavanagh, said: “The government-mandated break is over. Hamish & Andy’s enduring success is a testament to their ability to connect and bring listeners along for the ride. Their podcast isn’t just entertainment – it’s a cultural staple, creating an incredible fan community that’s been counting down the days to their return.”

Listen to the first episode of 2025 here. New weekly episodes of Hamish & Andy are available on LiSTNR starting today, Thursday 5 March 2025.

Source: *Australian Podcast Ranker Top 200 Podcasts – October 2024

About LiSTNR:

LiSTNR is a curated and personalised, free app offering radio, podcasts, music, and news, creating a new audio destination for all Australians. Featuring a fun and intuitive onboarding process, LiSTNR delivers an audio destination that is built for individual listeners’ routines and preferences. Highly personalised, it provides listeners a new world of audio entertainment, with their own daily feed of audio and easy discovery of new content through curated recommendations. Available across a large array of devices including both iOS and Android, CarPlay and Android Auto, Google Assistant and Alexa and Android TV, LiSTNR enables a fantastic listening experience, anytime and anywhere. Open your Ears to a new world of audio – download the free app today. LiSTNR.com

Optus is making a second stage of changes to the VAST satellite service, affecting Community Radio Network (CRN), National Radio News (NRN), BBC World Service, and RPH feeds. Unlike the previous update (on 11 February 2025), this change requires action from stations that use these services on Tuesday 11 March. 

What You Need to Do: 

The change will cause Optus VAST certified Set Top Box receivers to default to another service audio feed channel. Each station will need to “re-select” the channel service feed on their receiver. 

At 10:15am AEDT on 11 March 2025 

Ensure your station is not actively using or broadcasting any live satellite audio feeds at 10:15am AEDT on Tuesday 11 March 2025. 

After 10:15am AEDT on 11 March 2025 

“Re-select” the wanted service feed channel on your VAST Set Top Box receiver at any time after 10:15am AEDT for these relevant channels:  

• 629 BBC World Service 

• 630 Community Radio Network – CRN 1 

• 631 Community Radio Network – CRN 2 

• 632 RPH Australia 

Note: these are listed as radio channels on the receivers, not television channels. 

Note: NRN bulletins will still be available via FTP. 

Troubleshooting & Support:  

If your station has trouble receiving any of the satellite feeds after 10:15am AEDT, you can: 

1. Check that the VAST Set Top Box receiver is set to select the correct channel 

1. Power-cycle your VAST Set Top Box receiver 

1. Email us at crn@cbaa.org.au for further support 

These improvements are a step forward in ensuring a more stable and resilient satellite delivery system. We’re here to make sure they’re rolled out smoothly with minimal disruption to your stations – thank you for your action and attention to this important update.  

#Funding

The Kyle & Jackie O Show are making history with Kyle & Jackie O’s $5 Million Dawn Dig, the most thrilling competition ever to hit Australian breakfast radio. With a jaw-dropping $5 million buried beneath the sand, one lucky listener could walk away with a life-changing fortune!

Starting Monday February 24, listeners can tune in to The Kyle & Jackie O Show every morning for a chance to enter this once-in-a-lifetime event. The stakes are high, and only the luckiest entrants will secure a spot at the highly anticipated Dawn Dig event.

Then, on Friday April 11, the Kyle & Jackie O Show will be broadcasting live from Melbourne’s St Kilda West Beach, where the competition will reach its peak. Among 200 buried bags, each containing various cash prizes, only one will hold the ultimate $5 million jackpot. The chosen winner will dig for their future—but will they strike gold?

But the excitement doesn’t stop there. Listeners who head down to St Kilda West Beach to catch all the action and meet radio’s most famous duo will also have the chance to dig for thousands worth in cash and exclusive prizes.

Melbourne is home to some of the country’s biggest events. And now, in their first outside broadcast in Melbourne since beaming into the southern state, the city will be home to the country’s biggest-ever competition, hosted by none other than the Australia’s most iconic radio duo in a major live event.

On this morning’s announcement, Jackie ‘O’ Henderson said: “We’re going back to where it all started, digging for cash. We’ve had success with digging. But this time, it’s not a million dollars. That’s small fry. You need a big chunk of cash like $5 million!”

Kyle Sandilands added: “We thought we should make it $2 million, but you’ve got nothing left if you buy a house. We thought we’d make it $3 million, but we’ve never liked the number three. $4 million sounds like a better number, and then we thought that we should make it $5 million buried on the beach.”

Will Australia’s next millionaire be revealed on St Kilda West Beach? There’s only one way to find out!

Don’t miss your chance to be part of history. Tune in to The Kyle & Jackie O Show from 6am Monday on KIIS 1065 in Sydney, KIIS 101.1 in Melbourne or on the free iHeart app, and be ready to call for your shot at the dig of a lifetime.