The AFL Footy Show has been unceremoniously cancelled by Channel Nine after 25 years on the air. The network announced the decision in a statement released after Thursday night’s episode concluded. The 735th and last episode was broadcast without publicising its demise. “It is with regret that The Footy Show will no longer be produced,” Nine Melbourne managing director Matt Scriven said. “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 hoped.” The AFL Footy Show has been cancelled after 25 years on television. Pic: Channel Nine The axing follows a significant drop in ratings just months into a shake-up and sees the iconic program leave television. The name will live on through the Sunday Footy Show. Failed changes The NRL Footy Show was cancelled by Channel Nine at the end of last season. In their final seasons both programs were nearly unrecognisable from their iconic past, with the AFL edition up against stiff competition from Channel 7’s The Front Bar. Fox Sports presenter Neroli Meadows and comedian Anthony Lehmann were installed as hosts of the AFL Footy Show this year. I’m bloody disappointed The Footy Show has been cancelled but I’m grateful for the opportunity to host it with Nez, Fev, Dylan and Crawf and am really proud of the shows we made. Our team were brilliant and spare a thought for the crew, some of whom had been there for 25 years! — lehmo (@lehmo23) May 9, 2019 The show was made famous by the likes of Eddie McGuire, Sam Newman and comedian Trevor Marmalade. “I’m sad because it’s the end of a run for a great show,” McGuire said on Triple M radio on Friday morning. “It’s gone for 26 years, when we first started the show we were told we had six weeks to make it rate and here we are 26 years later and we got 729 more episodes out of it than anybody thought. “It’s been a huge success. It’s transformed football, certainly the entertainment and the commercialisation of the game. So we’re hugely proud of that.”<doc-sep>Neroli Meadows says she “loved every second” of the re-vamped Footy Show despite the long-running program being cancelled by Channel Nine last night. Meadows, Anthony Lehmann, Dylan Alcott and Brendan Fevola were handed the keys to one of the most iconic TV programs in the AFL landscape this season after the traditional format with hosts Eddie McGuire and Sam Newman saw a sharp dip in ratings over recent years. But the new format couldn’t arrest the slide, with as few as 10,000 people watching last week’s program in Perth, compared to the 67,000 watching rival football show The Front Bar. Following last night’s program, Channel Nine managing director Matt Scriven released a statement that was essentially the final nail in The Footy Show’s coffin after 25 years. “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 statement read. “Over the past three decades Nine has led the way with AFL entertainment and news programs and we will continue to do so, with the production of the award-winning Footy Classified and the Sunday Footy Show. “We remain committed to the AFL and creating great AFL content, and we will continue to focus on new ways to engage audiences who love the code.” Taking to Instagram after the news, Meadows said she was proud of the show they put to air this season. “Gave it a crack - loved every second,” she said. “Proud of the show we created this year and proud of the people who worked on it.”<doc-sep>The longest running sports entertainment program in prime-time Aussie TV has met its bitter end with tonight’s announcement that The Footy Show has been axed. In a press release sent out after tonight’s show, Nine’s Melbourne managing director, Marr Scriven, announced production of the iconic football panel show had ceased and paid tribute to the team behind the program. It comes just days after Nine reportedly denied rumours the channel would be pulling the pin on the embattled program, which has been smashed in recent weeks by Channel Seven's The Front Bar, starring Andy Maher, Mick Molloy and Sam Pang. Last week The Front Bar drew 427,000 viewers in the five capital cities compared to The Footy Show's dismal 97,000. It was a similar story in Perth, where The Front Bar attracted 67,000 viewers - almost seven times the 10,000 who watched The Footy Show. In a release Mr Scriven said: “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”. “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.” Rumours that the show had been flagged for termination following last week’s record-low ratings ran rife this week when only 53,000 Melburnians tuned in to watch the revamped panel. Mr Scriven said “Over the past three decades Nine has led the way with AFL entertainment and news programs and we will continue to do so, with the production of the award-winning Footy Classified and the Sunday Footy Show. “We remain committed to the AFL and creating great AFL content, and we will continue to focus on new ways to engage audiences who love the code.” Since it premiered in 1994, The Footy Show has clocked up 735 episodes, making it the longest running sports entertainment program in the history of prime-time television in Australia.<doc-sep>
The cast of the The Footy Show: Neroli Meadows, Brendan Fevola, Anthony 'Lehmo' Lehmann, Dylan Alcott and Shane Crawford. Picture. After less than two months following a major revamp, The AFL Footy Show has been sensationally axed by Channel 9 after a staggering 25 consecutive years on the air. The network released a statement late on Thursday night confirming production of the show had ceased. The long-running footy show hit an all-time ratings low on May 2, with just 53,000 viewers tuning in with the show which featured a new cast, including Anthony ‘Lehmo’ Lehmann and Brendan Fevola. Live stream the 2019 Toyota AFL Premiership Season on KAYO SPORTS. Every match of every round. Live & anytime on your TV or favourite device. Get your 14 day free trial > Up against Channel 7’s rival show, The Front Bar, Channel 9’s Footy Show struggled to compete despite the relaunch, with the network announcing at the conclusion of their show on May 9 that the show would cease production. The Footy Show has battled ratings issues for several years, with hosts such as Craig Hutchison and Rebecca Maddern unable to stop the decline. Following the May 9 show, Nine’s Melbourne Managing Director Matt Scriven confirmed the show would be no longer produced after clocking up 735 episodes since it premiered in 1994. “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,” Mr Scriven said in a statement. A previous incarnation of The Footy Show, at its 2017 Grand Final edition. Source: Supplied “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. “Over the past three decades Nine has led the way with AFL entertainment and news programs and we will continue to do so, with the production of the award-winning Footy Classified and the Sunday Footy Show. “We remain committed to the AFL and creating great AFL content, and we will continue to focus on new ways to engage audiences who love the code.”