Famed footy commentator Brian Taylor has been sacked from his regular gig calling Friday Night AFL games for Seven.
The 62-year-old former Aussie Rules star, who has worked for the network since 2006, will instead act as commentator during the ANZAC Day finals and big match.
Taylor’s popular Roaming Brian segment has also been bumped, moving to Thursdays from its regular Friday evening slot.
Taylor, an AFL great who played with Richmond and Collingwood in the 80s, has called Friday Night Footy for Seven since 2017.
The dramatic moves come as Seven’s AFL coverage faces a new rival in Fox Sport, which will also broadcast the 2025 season with its own production team.
Previously, Fox simulcast Seven’s coverage, but with a new deal with the AFL coming into effect in the new year, Foxtel will show the matches for free with their own commentary teams.
Famed footy commentator Brian Taylor (pictured) has been ruled out of his regular gig at Friday Night AFL Games for Seven
The dramatic moves come as Seven’s AFL coverage faces a new rival in Fox Sport, which will also broadcast the 2025 season with its own production team including Gerard Whateley (pictured)
Anthony Hudson (pictured) will join Whateley to host the Friday night match
The changes to the Seven AFL commentary box mean James Brayshaw, who usually partners Taylor, is likely to remain on Friday The Daily Telegraph.
Meanwhile, Fox Sport will have Gerard Whateley and Anthony Hudson to call the Friday night match.
It will also be a new experience for Whateley, who will continue to provide commentary for SEN on Thursday evenings and Saturdays.
The publication also reported on Friday that Seven will launch a segment called Extra Time to replace Taylor’s Roaming Brian.
The new feature will debut on Friday, while Hamish McLachlan has been tipped to team up with Taylor on Thursday.
It comes after Fox announced last month that AFL great Leigh Matthews would be joining their punditry team.
Matthews is regarded as one of the greatest players and coaches to grace the game, having made 332 appearances for Hawthorn during his playing career.
The forward would help the Hawks win four VFL premierships, most notably winning the Coleman Medal in 1975.
Taylor, an AFL great who played with Richmond and Collingwood in the 80s, has been calling Friday Night Footy for Seven since 2017
Whateley has poured cold water on claims that a rivalry could be developing between Seven and Fox.
“I probably don’t think about that… choice is a wonderful thing. It’s great in cricket. Now we can do that in footy,” he added.
Seven, meanwhile, will stream matches via 7plus when 2025 kicks off in March.
It comes after Taylor came under fire for comments made on air several times in the past.
He was banned in 2014 for making homophobic comments against then Geelong player Harry Taylor.
Taylor was taken off the field after his 150th game last weekend when the popular Cat player made an unusual wave at the crowd.
While watching the vision on Channel 7’s Saturday Night Footy panel, Taylor called him ‘a big p**fter’.
In 2023, the commentator did his ‘Roaming Brian’ section when he failed to recognize Australian Test cricketer Matthew Wade and asked the Collingwood star if he was his brother.
Taylor was criticized earlier this season for his favorable comments on Essendon player Jake Kelly during the Anzac Day clash.
He was also criticized by fans for his biased commentary during Collingwood’s victory over Melbourne in last season’s final.