Running a small business during the pandemic is like running both halves into the wind. They kept our economy going during the toughest of times, and we’re paying it forward by putting their names up in lights. Here’s who we’re taking to the big game.

The prize

We recently announced that we’d be giving away our ad space during Round 8 of the 2021 Toyota AFL Premiership and Round 9 of the 2021 NRL Telstra Premiership – next week’s games. Small businesses who won would have their work showcased in the broadcast, banners, big screens and on the hallowed NRL grass. That sort of exposure costs big bucks, reaching millions of fans and living rooms, and we’re making sure it goes to a good place.

The winners

From a barber shop, an avocado-themed tour bus company, tradies, a children’s clothing label and even a trail riding business, 17 small businesses have won a share of more than $1 million worth of Telstra’s premium advertising including space at next week’s AFL and NRL games across the country.  

The 17 successful businesses are:  

NRL

	Ace of Blade Barber Shop (Wynnum, QLD) – Rabbitohs v. Storm
	Brite Spark Electrical Services (Sydney, NSW) – Eels v. Roosters
	West Words (Sydney, NSW) – Panthers v. Sharks
	Holbrook Bakery (Holbrook, NSW) – Raiders v. Knights
	Unico Kitchens (Sydney, NSW) – Tigers v. Titans
	Muscle Mat (QLD) – Cowboys v. Broncos
	EME Roofing (Sydney, NSW) – Dragons v. Bulldogs
	Vegepod (Sydney, NSW) – Sea Eagles v. Warriors

AFL

	Animal Land (Diggers Rest, VIC) – Richmond v. Geelong
	Chum Creek Horse Riding & Huts (Chum Creek, VIC) – Melbourne v. Sydney
	The Little Veggie Patch Co. (Melbourne, VIC) – North Melbourne v. Collingwood
	Just Shear (Yorke Peninsula, SA) – Suns v. St Kilda
	TradiePad (Sydney, NSW) – Giants v. Essendon
	Goldie + Ace (Melbourne, VIC) – Crows v. Port Adelaide
	New Style Painting Service (Perth, WA) – Fremantle v. Brisbane Lions
	The Avocado Bus & Mine Movers (Perth, WA) -Hawthorn v. West Coast

We’ll also be highlighting around 50 other small businesses through our retail stores and on our website to extend our support even further.

These businesses deserve a big plug after an incredibly tough 12 months, and I’m thrilled we can put their names up in lights and showcase them to potential new customers.

Supporting small business with free consultations

I’d like to thank everyone who entered. Everyone who did register interest for one of our new Telstra Business Go Digital Consults, which is still available to Aussie small businesses for free (normally valued at $149 each) for the rest of the year.

A Telstra Small Business Expert will do an over the phone review of how digital your business is, and provide a tailored report and roadmap for you to ‘Go Digital’ including recommendations in the following areas:

• Get connected – helping ensure you’re set up for success with the right tools, devices and connectivity to get and stay online.

• Engage online – advising on how to engage with customers online (website, social media, search engines, etc.), digital marketing to help boost your online presence, and tracking/managing existing customer relationships.
• Help stay secure and supported – making sure you have the right tools to reduce the threat of viruses and malware to your business devices and data – plus access to ongoing support.
• Business Software – offering insights into solutions including tech services, accounting software, security software, CRM software, and more to suit your business.

Our extensive partner network has also come to the party to support SMBs, with the Telstra Business Go Digital Consult unlocking a host of exclusive offers from Small Business Australia, Samsung, Cisco, Spotzer, Facebook and Microsoft.

We’ve also developed an interactive online Go Digital Tool, to help businesses self-assess their digital readiness and receive recommendations.

Congratulations to our winners. We’ll see you on the field.

Other winners

Threesides Marketing; Your Happy Feet Podiatry; Active and Ageless; Deja Vu Emporium; Designed Learning; Examiner Driving School; Flexigen; Hunt Hospitality; Print Storm; RISING KINGS; The Girls & Boys Brigade; The Home Hub Trader; AHR (Alison Hucks Resources); Quality Living and Support Services; Rounding Up; Style Sensation; The Cage Youth Foundation; The Wholesome Gift Box; Sweep Scrub; Blues Glass Shower Screens; Tasmanian Oyster Company; Blind Citizens Australia; Captains Cove; Coad88 Evac Plan; Footscray Community Arts Centre; GM Sound Studios; Marbled Meats; Pickers Retro Haven; Sheen Panel Service; Sign Obsession; SMAART Recruitment; Social Outcome Solutions; Springhill Farm; Stix and Flora; Stopline; Stuck on Stationery; SWiM Communications; The Fitter; The Food Purveyor; The Gifting Guild; The Graffiti Eaters; The Studio Yarra Valley; Wash & Lather Soap Co; Wide Awake Wellness; Active Wellness Spa; Diamond Fitness; Macoda Mattress; Mine Movers

After a difficult season in 2020, the NRL is back and bigger than ever. It’s our 20th year partnering with the NRL, and there are new ways to watch your favourite teams at home with us.

This year’s NRL season will feature a full 25 rounds after the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted last year’s schedule. Kicking off on Thursday, March 11, we’ll see matches played away and at home, including in New Zealand.

Unlike other codes, the NRL has laid out its entire season as part of the draw, with eight games a week to keep you locked to the box.

We even get a three-match State of Origin series for 2021, which is set to be another nail biter. The season builds to a thrilling crescendo on October 3, with the grand final.

20 years on, and closer to the action than ever

We’ve been partners with the NRL for 20 years now. That’s 20 years of thrilling moments that have unfolded before our eyes. Moments that make NRL simply the best.

The NRL was first telecast in 1961 between Balmain and Norths. Half a match was televised each weekend as a trial. Since then, we’ve watched sports broadcasting and technology take a quantum leap.

Games are now broadcast in glorious high definition, with technology injected all over the field to bring you the action from every angle.

Our partnership with the NRL has also introduced new technology to the game, including the Telstra Tracker. The Telstra Tracker combines technology and sport to bring fans closer to the game with live player insights. It tracks including player speed, intensity and ground coverage.

The evolution of technology gives every viewer the best seat in the house when it comes to the 2021 NRL season. And we’ve got new and exciting ways to watch the games in store, too.

How to watch NRL games live in 2021

Earlier in the year, we announced that we’d be changing the way you enjoy NRL games with us.

Update, 1 June 2021: Our exclusive $5/mth for 12 months Kayo Basic offer for eligible AFL and NRL live pass customers has expired as of 31 May 2021.

For those who missed out, you can still save $10/mth on Kayo for 12 months. That’s for either $15/mth for Kayo Basic or $25/mth for Kayo Premium for 12 months for Telstra consumer customers, new and returning to Kayo.

After 12 months you’ll roll onto standard subscription fees (currently $25/mth for Kayo Basic & $35/mth for Kayo Premium). Redeem by 31 May 2022.

Kayo also takes sports streaming to another level offering multiple sports on multiple screens at once. With features like SplitView on selected devices, you can watch up to four events at once so you don’t miss a minute, even when scheduling conflicts happen for those big games.

The NRL Official App, powered by Telstra, remains the digital home of all the other features NRL fans know and love, including the latest news, full match replays, live scores, stats, highlights and more. 

Getting you to the game with Telstra Plus

The new fixture puts home teams back in front of home crowds once again. In some instances, for the first time since the start of the pandemic.

Getting into the action on your couch is good, but nothing comes close to being in the stands with fellow fans to cheer on your favourite team.

Our loyalty program, Telstra Plus, gets you access to discounts on tickets for NRL games, and a range of other benefits. You can sign up on our website.

We’re also working hard with our partners at the AFL to bring the live sporting experience of the future to places like Marvel Stadium and the MCG.

We can’t wait for the first whistle of the season to sound, as we kick off another awesome year of footy.

Things you need to know

Redeem by 31 May 2021. Must sign up via Telstra. Cancel anytime, roll onto standard fees after 12 months. To be eligible, customers must have redeemed a Telstra NRL Live Pass service prior to 22 Dec 2020 and maintain that active Telstra service used to redeem it.

From the Cowboys finally winning a championship in 2015, to the Rabbitohs breaking their drought in 2014 and Manly’s 40-0 thrashing of Melbourne in 2008, it’s been a huge couple of decades of footy, and we’re so proud that we’ve been there through all of it.

When our partnership first began, the ability to stream sport on mobile devices was still over a decade away. Together with the NRL, we used technology and innovation to make this vision a reality to bring fans even closer to the game they love, in more places on our network.

We are continually pushing to improve this experience and recently announced an exclusive offer for eligible Telstra customers who’ve previously used NRL Live Pass to receive $20/month off Kayo’s Basic subscription for 12 months, meaning they can enjoy the footy – and about 50 other sports – from their mobile device and almost any screen in their home for just $5/month.

And it doesn’t end there – to celebrate our 20 year anniversary, we’ll also be rewarding fans who are Telstra Plus members with access to discounted NRL tickets this season.

A big 20 years

The world has changed a lot in the past 20 years, and so has Telstra and the NRL. With so many big moments emerging from the game, we thought we’d take a look at some of our favourite highlights from over the years.

2001 – Newcastle Knights win first ever Telstra Premiership.

At the time, the 2001 NRL Grand Final between the Newcastle Knights and Paramatta Eels was the 3rd highest attended NRL game of all time, with over 90,000 fans packing into Sydney to see who would win the first ever Telstra Premiership. The Knights ended up taking it out, in a 30-24 nail biter, where the Eels pulled in a massive second half after falling behind 24-0 at half time. After converting 5 from 7 goals, and helping set up some big tries, Andrew Johns won the Clive Churchill medal

2007 – Gold Coast Titans enter the league, where Telstra would later launch its 5G Innovation Centre.

The Gold Coast Titans were awarded their license for the NRL in 2004, after a lengthy bid process where the odds were stacked against those pushing for the return of elite level football in the Gold Coast region. Just 5 years later, after 3 seasons, they made the NRL finals – a true feat for such a young club! The region is also a special place for Telstra, where in 2018 we launched our 5G Innovation Centre in the Gold Coast to lay the groundwork for the future of connectivity.

2008 – NRL Celebrate its Centenary of League, the same year the iPhone is introduced to Australia

The biggest celebration of the NRL since rugby league first came to Australia, also marked the year that Apple’s iPhone launched in Australia, completely changing how we communicate, work and play and creating an explosion in the phone market.

For the NRL, this Centenary premiership was won by the Manly Sea Eagles who crushed the Melbourne Storm 40-0.

The original iPhone 3G that launched in Australia had a 3.5-inch touchscreen, 2.0 megapixel camera and most importantly was the first iPhone with Apple’s App Store. We’re now up to the iPhone 12, which is just as powerful as your laptop, has 4 different cameras across it and probably houses every bit of important information to you in the world.

2014 – Fans can stream matches on their mobile for first time with NRL Live Pass

In a huge moment for Australian sport, Telstra and the NRL launched NRL Live Pass in the NRL Official App, offering Telstra customers free streaming on their compatible mobile devices for every game of the NRL season. For the first time, it didn’t matter if you were having a picnic with friends, at the beach or having a relaxing bath – as long as you had an internet connection you could watch the footy.

Today, our Live Pass offering has evolved into our expanded partnership with Kayo, which gives fans the ability to stream the NRL – and 50+ domestic and international sports – on just about any device you can think of, wherever you are.

The NRL Official App, powered by Telstra, remains the digital home of all the other features NRL fans know and love, including the latest news, full match replays, live scores, stats, highlights and more.

2020 – Our partnership expands to include the NRL Telstra Women’s Premiership

As a long-time partner of the NRL, we support every effort to make the game as inclusive and diverse as possible, and to provide a platform for aspiring female athletes to realise their dream.

In 2020 we announced our commitment to provide greater opportunities, exposure and investment into the programs currently in place for women and young girls wishing to pursue a rugby league career.

Young players can’t be what they can’t see, so it was vital for our partnership that we were able to bring the Women’s State of Origin and NRLW premiership to fans through the Official NRL App.

It’s been a big 20 years in our partnership, with so many technological advances that have helped bring rugby league into more homes and onto more devices. We can’t wait to see what else comes from our partnership in the years ahead.

Kayo promotion terms and conditions

_{Redeem by 31 May 2021. Must sign up via Telstra. Cancel anytime, roll onto standard fees after 12 months. To be eligible, customers must have redeemed a Telstra NRL Live Pass service prior to 22 Dec 2020 and maintain that active Telstra service used to redeem it.}

If Australia’s small businesses were footy players, they’d all deserve the Brownlow and the Dally M for how they’ve kept themselves and our economy running over the past year. Now, we want to pay it forward.

Today we’re kicking off around $8.5m worth of support, made up of free one-on-one assistance to help small businesses ‘go digital’ for the rest of the year and (and this is a real kicker) the opportunity to have your business up in lights in front of millions of people at NRL and AFL matches.

We feel this is the perfect way for Telstra to help, and give local businesses priceless exposure at the same time.

Have your business up in lights at the NRL or AFL

Running a business can be a bit like a footy game – really competitive with lots of players to contend with. We want to help level the playing field, by putting businesses up in lights on the field.

We’re giving away our ad space during Round 8 of the 2021 Toyota AFL Premiership season and Round 9 of the 2021 NRL Telstra Premiership. This includes the broadcast, banners, big screen and the NRL grass. It’s exclusive exposure, reaching potentially millions of people, that big businesses pay big bucks for.

17 matches means 17 winners getting national exposure – it doesn’t matter if you’re a tattoo artist or a florist – while another 50 businesses can win advertising spots at their local Telstra retail store, Telstra.com and My Telstra app.

This is our way of giving the backbone of our economy a well-deserved big plug, But that’s not all. We want to help all our small business customers be their best online at the same time.

Go Digital

Our new Telstra Business Go Digital Consult is designed to help your business be its best online, to help meet customer demands and increase your efficiencies, and we’re offering it free (valued at $149 each) to small businesses for the rest of the year.

A Telstra Small Business Expert will do an over the phone review of how digital your business is, and provide a tailored report and roadmap for you to ‘Go Digital’ covering the following areas:

• Get connected – ensuring you’re set up for success with the right tools, devices and connectivity to get and stay online.
• Engage online – advising on how to engage with customers online (website, social media, search engines, etc.), digital marketing to help boost your online presence, and tracking/managing existing customer relationships.
• Help stay secure and supported – making sure you have the right tools to reduce the threat of viruses and malware to your business devices and data – plus access to ongoing support.
• Business Software – offering insights into solutions including tech services, accounting software, security software, CRM software, and more to suit your business.

Our extensive partner network has also come to the party to support SMBs, with the Telstra Business Go Digital Consult unlocking a host of exclusive offers from Small Business Australia, Samsung, Cisco, Spotzer, Facebook and Microsoft.

We’ve also developed an interactive online Go Digital Tool, to help businesses self-assess their digital readiness and receive recommendations.

How it works

Eligible Telstra small business customers who register interest for a free Telstra Business Go Digital Consult can head to our portal and share a brief description on why they deserve to have their business up in lights go into the running our footy ad space giveaway. Free and easy, because we know you have your hands full.

We’re constantly adding to and evolving our offerings to our small business customers, like our recent partnership with MYOB, because we all want them to thrive.

More screens, more sports, more value – we’re giving Telstra sports fans an unmissable offer.

For nine years, Telstra’s AFL Live Pass and NRL Live Pass have been there for every killer kick, big bounce, tremendous try and glorious goal from the Toyota AFL Premiership and NRL Telstra Premiership. When we forged a path for live streaming sport on your mobile device in 2012, nothing else like it existed at the time.

Now, your favourite movies, TV shows, music, and live sports can be accessed in just a few taps. How and where you enjoy entertainment and your expectations have changed greatly in this time. Aussies have told us they want to watch more diverse content on more screens, especially the telly at home.

While Live Pass has provided a great sporting experience over the years, we are replacing it with Kayo, which has quickly become the premium sports streaming service in Australia, and we’re excited to provide an exclusive offer for you to watch a wider range of sports on your choice of screen.

Update, 1 June 2021: Our exclusive $5/mth for 12 months Kayo Basic offer for eligible AFL and NRL live pass customers has expired as of 31 May 2021.

For those who missed out, you can still save $10/mth on Kayo for 12 months. That’s for either $15/mth for Kayo Basic or $25/mth for Kayo Premium for 12 months for Telstra consumer customers, new and returning to Kayo.

After 12 months you’ll roll onto standard subscription fees (currently $25/mth for Kayo Basic & $35/mth for Kayo Premium). Redeem by 31 May 2022.

With these exclusive offers, you’ll be able to catch the action from a line-up of more than 50 of the best international and domestic sports in 2021.

Kayo also takes sports streaming to another level offering multiple sports on multiple screens at once. With features like SplitView on selected devices, you can watch up to four events at once so you don’t miss a minute, even when scheduling conflicts happen for those big games.

The AFL Live App and NRL Official App will remain powered by Telstra, and will still be the home of all the other features you know and love, including match replays, live scores, highlights, stats, and other great features on the AFL, AFLW and NRL apps.

We continue to be committed to supporting AFL and NRL. In fact, we have recently renewed our partnership with the AFL through to 2024 which also includes making Marvel Stadium in Melbourne one of the most advanced in the world.

For those who have been with us for a while, thank you for helping us drive the revolution of watching live sport on your mobiles.

Like many things at Telstra, we’re honoured that Live Pass laid a foundation of innovation for even better ways to experience the things we love as a nation. And there’s few things Aussies love more than the footy.

Things you need to know about the “$20/month off Kayo for 12 months on us” offer from Telstra

• Offer available to eligible AFL or NRL Telstra Live Pass customers. Must redeem by 31 May 2021. To be eligible, customers must have redeemed a Telstra AFL or NRL Live Pass service prior to 22 Dec 2020 and maintain that active Telstra service used to redeem it.
• Must sign up through My Telstra. Kayo standard monthly fees (currently $25/mth for Kayo Basic) apply after offer period unless you change or cancel. One redemption per customer. If you cancel, you cannot restart the offer. Not available in conjunction with any other Kayo offers. Not compatible with third party billing platforms. Telstra billing not available for existing Kayo subscribers on another payment method. Eligible users will receive details of the offer via direct communication from Telstra with instructions on how to take up the offer through Telstra.
• Customers who have previously purchased an annual subscription to AFL Live Pass or NRL Live Pass will receive a partial refund, depending the term length remaining on their subscription.
• There is no change to Live Pass for the Netball Live Official App or My Football Live App as a result of this announcement

Things you need to know about the “$10/month off Kayo for 12 months on us” offer from Telstra for Telstra consumer customers

• Offer available to Telstra consumer customers. Must redeem by 31 May 2021. Must sign up through My Telstra. Kayo standard monthly fees (currently $25/mth for Kayo Basic) apply after offer period unless you change or cancel. One redemption per customer account. If you cancel, you cannot restart the offer. Not available in conjunction with any other Kayo offers. Not compatible with third party billing platforms. Telstra billing not available for existing Kayo subscribers on another payment method.