The NRL has negotiated a 70 per cent increase on the current $1.025 billion deal, which was negotiated four years ago, and will earn more than $1.8 billion from News Corp, Channel Nine and Telstra as the New Zealand and international TV rights are still to be negotiated, along with radio rights. ARL chairman John Grant estimated the total value of the deal would exceed $1.9 billion and could even reach $2 billion.

 2. How does it compare with the AFL deal?

The AFL deal is worth $2.508 billion over six years, which equates to $418 million per year, whereas the NRL's five-year deal – if it totalled $2 billion – would be worth $400 million per year. However, the AFL has 18 teams who play 198 regular season games compared to the 192 games the 16 NRL clubs play. AFL games are also played over 100 minutes, whereas an NRL match is 80 minutes.

3. Why have News Corp paid so much?

Optus's purchase of the English Premier League rights suddenly raised the real possibility that the telco or another rival, such as BeIN Sports, could secure the NRL pay-TV rights ahead of News. Such an outcome would have been a disaster for Fox Sports as the NRL is the main subscription driver for Foxtel. With Nine prepared to sell back 21 Saturday night matches, Fox Sports will retain the Super Saturday franchise and simulcast rights mean it will now broadcast every NRL game.

4. Does Dave Smith deserve any credit for the deal?

The decision to separate the free-to-air and pay-TV rights negotiations created competitive tension between the parties and while Rupert Murdoch may have been fuming at the deal with Nine, News ultimately paid more for the AFL and NRL rights than the company probably would have.

5. What will change under the new deal?

There will be NRL matches five days per week in 2016, with Nine to broadcast 18 Thursday night matches and one game on Friday nights, as well as Sunday afternoon. From 2017, Monday Night Football will be replaced by a 6pm Friday game on Fox Sports, which will also introduce a dedicated NRL channel. Nine will broadcast a Saturday night game for the last five rounds of each season.