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ajor League Baseball (MLB) has announced a deal with Tabcorp Holdings (TAB), seeing TAB become the official wagering partner of MLB in Australia.
The deal will see TAB access MLB programming, including the MLB Network, the league’s 24/7 TV channel, for Australian fans across TAB’s 4,400 live venues, and the TAB website and app.
TAB will also hold the rights to broadcast up to ten live games per week, giving Australian fans exclusive access to MLB promotions and competitions, similar to the deals TAB confirmed with the NFL and NBA last year, as the major U.S. sports push to further expand their reach across Australia.
TAB managing director of wagering and media, Adam Rytenskild, said the new partnership will help Australians get deeper access to MLB action.
“There is growing demand for U.S. sports content in Australia, particularly among TAB punters,” Rytenskild said.
“Baseball is America’s national pastime and this ground-breaking MLB deal, which compliments our NBA and NFL partnerships, helps us to fulfil our ambition of being the home of U.S. sport in Australia and to deliver superb experiences for our customers, both in venues and digitally via the app and website,” he said.
MLB executive vice president for gaming and new business ventures, Kenny Gersh, said this partnership is the next step in growing baseball’s popularity across Australia.
“When the Los Angeles Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks played the Opening Series games at the historic Sydney Cricket Ground in 2014, we saw how much baseball resonated with Australian sports fans.
“We want to continue to help develop baseball in Australia and grow the game nationwide.
“Between TAB’s retail footprint and wagering expertise, we’re confident that this partnership is a significant step towards elevating baseball in Australia,” he said.