Eddie McGuire dropped from Nine’s Tuesday footy show as network shifts content to digital

Nine will not return the Tuesday edition of Footy Classified in 2027, a decision that removes Eddie McGuire from the network’s suite of football magazine shows next year.

The vacated Tuesday slot will be filled by an additional weekly episode of Footy Furnace, another panel program produced by McGuire’s production company, JAM TV. That episode is not expected to air on Nine’s free-to-air channels, with the network planning to place it on its streaming platform 9Now or possibly behind the Stan Sport paywall.

Eddie McGuire has anchored Footy Classified’s second weekly edition since 2020, when the show’s supplementary episode initially screened on Wednesdays before being moved to Tuesdays. Footy Classified will continue to appear on Monday evenings, hosted by this masthead’s Sam McClure.

"The Tuesday edition of Footy Classified will not return next year," a Nine spokesperson said.

Nine said the change is part of a wider effort to align its broadcast output nationally, noting that AFL programming typically does not air in New South Wales and Queensland, where NRL programming dominates.

The network holds the free-to-air broadcast rights for the NRL, while Seven handles free-to-air coverage of the AFL alongside subscription platforms Foxtel and Kayo. Media industry observers have flagged growing use of low-cost studio panel formats as broadcasters seek to manage large sports rights bills with cheaper in-house content.

Footy Furnace is produced by JAM TV, the company linked to McGuire. Although the program remains part of Nine’s portfolio, moving episodes off main broadcast channels reduces their exposure in traditional broadcast markets and shifts distribution toward digital and subscription audiences.

McGuire will remain on the network in other roles. He is set to continue presenting coverage of the Melbourne Cup Spring Racing Carnival and is expected to appear in several other Nine projects during 2027. McGuire previously served as chief executive of the network between 2006 and 2007.

Sam McClure continues as host of Footy Classified’s Monday edition, which retains regular panellists including Matthew Lloyd, Jimmy Bartel and Damian Barrett. The schedule change reflects Nine’s broader programming strategy as it reallocates football-related content across free-to-air and digital platforms.