Welcome to the weekend, friends.

Start mapping out your trips to the footy - the AFLW season fixtures were released today. We kick off on August 30, and the regular season will wrap up 10 weeks later, at the end of October. There’s Pride Round in week seven, the first AFLW game in Coffs Harbour in week 3, and we’ll see our first AFLW Dreamtime match in the NT (the week 9 clash between Essendon and Richmond).

How’s this: in the NT, over 40% of all registered AFL players are women and girls.

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Stat of the day

4,383
The number of days that Lashinda Demus will have waited to receive an Olympic gold medal from the London 2012 Games. Demus originally finished second in the women’s 400m hurdles but the winner at the time, Russian athlete Natalya Antyukh, has since been disqualified due to evidence of doping. Demus will have the gold medal placed around her neck in Paris after the International Olympic Committee agreed to hold the first ever medal reallocation ceremony at a Summer Olympics on the 8th of August, exactly 12 years after her race.

Quote of the day

“Football Australia acknowledges the enquiries regarding the potential involvement of other Macarthur FC players in the betting allegations, specifically, enquiries have been made about players Jed Drew and Matthew Millar."
Football Australia in a statement after two more Macarthur FC players were named in relation to a betting scandal. Three players - Ulises Davila, Clayton Lewis, and Kearyn Baccus - were arrested and charged earlier this month after it was alleged they had been paid by a gambling syndicate to purposely receive yellow cards. The two named today have not been charged.

Random fact of the day

The first international cricket match was held between the US and Canada in September 1844. The match was played on a pitch located in what is now downtown Manhattan. Notably, Australia and England played the first Test matches beginning in 1882 at The Oval.

I’ve got 1 minute

The French Open has banned spectators from drinking during matches after complaints from players about rowdy crowds.

It comes as the first week is nearing the end. Here’s what you need to know.

Alcohol Ban

Organisers of the French Open have banned alcohol in the stands after several complaints from players. Novak Djokovic and Iga Świątek, the men’s and women’s number one seeds, both made complaints during their games regarding unruly behaviour while Belgian player David Goffin allegedly had chewing gum spat at him.

Tournament director Amélie Mauresmo added that chair umpires will be stricter in enforcing respect for the players and silence while the ball is in play.

Spectators at the event will still be able to drink on the concourse and around the grounds.

How are the Aussies going?

Alex De Minaur and Thanasi Kokkinakis, the two remaining Aussies in the draw, both won their second round matches overnight. De Minaur made the third round at Roland Garros for the first time in his career, defeating Spaniard Jaume Munar in straight sets. Meanwhile Kokkinakis overcame Italian Giulio Zeppieri in five sets, coming back from a two-set deficit.

I’ve got 2 minutes

Should sport be free to watch?

That is the question being debated behind-the-scenes in parliament at the moment.

Labor currently has a bill before the Senate which some argue could threaten the ability of Australians to view major sporting events for free. Yesterday, the Greens announced they will introduce an amendment to change it.

What is anti-siphoning?

In Australia, we have something called the ‘anti-siphoning scheme’, which controls media access to major sporting events. It means that the broadcasting rights to nationally significant sporting events (e.g. the Olympics and the Paralympics) are offered to free-to-air broadcasters before subscription services.

Anti-siphoning laws were put in place to ensure that Australians would always be able to watch these major sporting events for free.

The anti-siphoning list specifies which sporting events fall under the laws. There are currently ten types of sports, plus the Olympic and Commonwealth Games, on the list.

So, what is the proposed change?

Labor wants to separate broadcast rights and streaming rights.

Under this bill, Labor will still prevent streaming services from buying the “broadcast rights” to major sporting events. However, streaming services would be able to acquire exclusive streaming rights.

This would mean that TVs with an aerial would still be able to watch sport for free, however devices connected to the internet might not be able to.

Currently, 20% of Australians watch their sport online and this number is anticipated to reach 50% by 2030. For example, during last year’s Women’s Soccer World Cup, 3.8 million Australians watched the Matildas via an internet connection.

Labor argues its new bill would “enhance the likelihood of free coverage of listed events”. However, many argue it will do the opposite.

What do the Greens want to do?

The bill has passed the House of Representatives and now needs approval from the Senate.

Yesterday, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, their Spokesperson for Communications, said the party will introduce an amendment to the bill because it believes sport “should be free for both for those who use older TVs with an aerial, and those who watch on their phone, tablet or digital device via internet streaming”.

Hanson-Young cited reports from the US were some Americans reportedly pay more than $2,000 per year to watch a season of the NFL.

Hanson-Young added: “Sport brings us together on common ground as a nation, but Labor's subscription sports scheme will see our community further divided into the haves and havenots. It's not fair play.”

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