If Nine’s 2026 Upfront leaned on Olympic prestige and “defining Australian moments,” Seven’s response is all about rhythm – a year-round, data-fuelled strategy built on live sport, trusted news, and big entertainment.
At its 2026 Upfront presentation, held at Royal Randwick, the network positioned itself as the home of consistency: sport every week, entertainment every night, and data precision every second.
“There are two certainties in life: death and taxes. And there are two certainties in broadcast television – sport and news,” Angus Ross, Group Managing Director, Seven Television told Mediaweek. “Our slate will provide certainty across the entire year.”
The network’s key announcement was that it has secured the exclusive Australian rights to the Rugby League World Cup 2026 (RLWC2026), from 15 October 2026.
The announcement, made by Mel McLaughlin, and Hamish McLachlan is promising 80 hours of premium live sport.
Kicking off with a clash between Australia and New Zealand at Sydney’s Allianz Stadium, Seven’s month-long coverage will showcase the very best of international rugby league with 18 men’s, 15 women’s and 20 wheelchair matches.
Seven West Media Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Jeff Howard, said: “Seven is proud to be the unrivalled home of Australian sport. The Rugby League World Cup is a significant world-class event and hosting it on home soil makes it even more special.”
Owning the sporting calendar
The rest of Seven’s 52-week sport slate remains its commercial backbone, spanning AFL, cricket, Supercars, horse racing, NFL, LIV Golf, and the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games.
The Games, which run from 23 July to 2 August, land neatly between Paris 2024 and Los Angeles 2028. It’s a neatly packaged and strategic play that keeps Seven top-of-mind between Olympic cycles.
“If you want to reach a large audience in one place at one time, sport is where you do it,” Ross said. “If you’re not investing in news and sport, you’re not a complete network.”
Gereurd Roberts
Gereurd Roberts, Group Managing Director, Seven Digital, added that sport’s power lies in passion. “There’s no more engaged audience than a passionate sports audience,” he told Mediaweek.
“Advertisers are trying to reach those highly engaged viewers who are therefore more receptive and open to their advertising and we can offer them that every week of the year, not just for a few weeks in January or during the winter season.”
That commitment extends to accessibility. “Australians deserve the right to be able to watch their key sports for free,” Roberts said. “These are key cultural moments. They bring Australians together in ways never seen before, and that’s a really critical part of our cultural fabric.”
The Seven Upfront stage.
7plus: from catch-up to commercial engine
On the digital front, 7plus continues to be the network’s growth story.
What began as a catch-up service has evolved into one of Australia’s biggest free entertainment platforms, reaching more than one million daily users and adding 1.4 million new registrations in 2024–25.
Live streaming has surged off the back of free AFL and cricket coverage, up 62% year-on-year in FY25, and 84% year-to-date heading into this financial year.
VOD viewing is also up 25%, driven by younger audiences discovering Seven’s content on their own terms.
Roberts said the growth reflects Seven’s “total television” philosophy. “We don’t talk about digital instead of broadcast; we talk about digital as well as broadcast. Between the two, it’s an incredibly powerful proposition.”
He continued, “There’s actually only about 9% crossover between our live audiences on 7plus and our VOD audiences.
“So yes, we’ve got total television growth, and yes, the growth on 7plus is incredible — but it’s the growth in new and younger audiences who are going to become lifetime Seven customers that we’re really proud of.”
Data precision meets real-world results
Seven’s data proposition is also accelerating.
The network unveiled a new partnership with Westpac DataX, linking streaming ad exposure on 7plus directly to real-world sales through its 7REDiQ platform.
Brands can now connect ad impressions to point-of-sale results, online and in-store, across more than 50 product and service categories, combining Seven’s 15.2 million registered users with Westpac DataX’s 12 million customers.
“Financial data is a key focus for 7REDiQ, driving continuous innovation and improvement in how we measure impact and deliver real business outcomes,” Roberts said. “As new partners join, 7REDiQ creates even greater value and performance for advertisers with Seven, exclusively across the entire video streaming category.”
7GeoPlus: GPS-level accuracy for advertisers
Seven also announced 7GeoPlus, a new GPS-verified geolocation tool developed with GeoComply, designed to provide advertisers with targeting accuracy down to 20 metres.
“The geo-targeting work came from recognising that IP-based targeting can be a bit unreliable,” Roberts explained.
“For us, news is an incredibly critical part of the network. If you’re in a regional area, or somewhere near a border where standards aren’t up to scratch, we wanted to do better.”
Originally designed to deliver the right local news bulletin and AFL match to viewers, 7GeoPlus has evolved into a key commercial product.
“Advertisers want confidence in the precision of their geo-targeting,” Roberts said. “We simply saw an opportunity to add another layer of precision for advertisers, and we think it’s going to be really powerful for them.”
Phoenix and a full-stack trading future
Behind the scenes, Seven’s Phoenix trading platform continues to gain traction, used by more than 140 clients to dynamically optimise campaigns across broadcast, BVOD, and regional.
The platform automatically reallocates spend to ensure guaranteed delivery, effectively eliminating under-delivery issues that have long frustrated agencies.
Together, Phoenix, 7GeoPlus, and 7REDiQ represent what Seven describes as a “connected trading loop” — linking audience, geography, and delivery into a measurable ecosystem that delivers on both reach and return.
Familiar favourites and fresh formats
Seven’s 2026 entertainment slate blends returning tentpoles with new homegrown shows designed to broaden its reach across demographics. The network’s headline newcomers include:
• Caught in the Middle – a giant-arena quiz show from Talpa Studios (The Voice, The Floor), hosted by Shane Jacobson.
• My Reno Rules – a renovation competition hosted by Dr Chris Brown, giving everyday Aussies the chance to win their dream home.
• SAS: Australia v England – a new season of the hit format featuring a celebrity showdown filmed in the Moroccan desert.
• Once in a Lifetime – a travel-meets-wildlife adventure series starring Dr Chris Brown, Mick Molloy, and Amanda Keller.
• Tina Arena: Unravel Me – a landmark Helium Pictures documentary chronicling Arena’s 50-year career.
Ross said Seven’s entertainment approach for 2026 is about continuity with room to experiment.
“We’ve got a really consistent schedule for 2026,” he said. “It’s about delivering what Australians love: strong storytelling, live sport, trusted news, all while leaving just enough room to surprise them.”