Footy Show axed: Long-suffering TV mainstay cancelled
Channel Nine has axed The Footy Show following a catastrophic ratings plummet.
The new-look panel was told of the decision after last night’s program, just eight episodes into their tenure.
It comes after a disastrous year of ratings, including only 53,000 viewers in Melbourne last week compared to 278,000 for its Channel Seven competitor, The Front Bar.
But in reality the program had been flagging for several years, a far cry from the nearly 500,000 viewers The Footy Show once attracted since starting in 1994 with Eddie McGuire and Sam Newman.
This incarnation has been produced by Eddie McGuire’s production company, Jam TV.
Nine’s Melbourne Managing Director, Matt Scriven, paid tribute to the program’s hosts and crew following the show last night, saying it was a tough decision to end the program.
“I want to thank the current hosts, Anthony Lehmann, Neroli Meadows, Dylan Alcott, Brendan Fevola and Shane Crawford, the former hosts of The Footy Show, and the hard-working crew for their great contribution,” he said.
“It is with regret that The Footy Show will no longer be produced. It has been a tough decision to end the program that has been such a trailblazer, but sadly the new show has not captured audiences in the way we had hoped.”
The Footy Show is the longest-running sports entertainment program in the history of prime-time television in Australia, clocking up 735.