From Analytics to Acquisitions: Aari Patikas

How Aari Patikas built a career at Foxtel Group defined by growth and transformation.

Aari Patikas has built a career at Foxtel Group defined by growth and transformation – from his early days in analytics, helping steer the company through the shift from broadcast to streaming, to his lateral career growth move into Sports Content Acquisitions and Partnerships.

“The number one reason I love working at Foxtel Group is because I love sport. I play it, I coach it, I watch it every day,” Aari explains. “And Foxtel Group is the leader in sport in Australia.

“Throughout my career there have been so many things that I’m proud of and that I’ve really enjoyed working on. Whenever I’ve been ready for new challenges, the business has supported me. In my current role I get to work directly with partners like the NRL, AFL, Cricket Australia, Supercars and Netball Australia helping grow their audiences and shape competitions, and with the increased need for data fluency across the industry, my analytical grounding is a huge advantage.

“I grew up loving both Aussie codes and European football – and now with DAZN we’re in a position to bridge the two. Seeing the UEFA Women’s Champions League, and now the FIFA Club World Cup on our platforms is incredible. It’s exciting to be part of the team bringing world-class sport to Australian fans – and opening the door for our local codes to explore global opportunities.”

A love of sport and numbers

“Sport was always part of who I was,” Aari says. “My dad was one of the first Australians to play professionally overseas. He was a Socceroo, played in the first UEFA Champions League competition, and set records that are still recognised today.

“Growing up, I was obsessed with his stats, his milestones – I knew them all. Looking back, that’s probably where my love of data started too.”

Aari’s dad is football legend Jimmy Patikas, the first established Australian player to be signed by a professional European football club.

Spending part of his childhood splitting the school year between Australia and Europe – six months in Sydney, six months overseas during his dad’s seasons – further deepened Aari’s love of all kinds of football. At home, it was NRL and the Canterbury Bulldogs.

“They’re top of the table right now,” he proudly notes – as is he in the staff tipping comp.

“I grew up in the Canterbury area, playing football (soccer) for Canterbury Juniors and Canterbury-Marrickville Olympic Reps. My grandfather coached. My mum played. My sister played.

"The Bulldogs were our local professional sporting team – and they’re still mine today.

"For us, sport wasn’t just something we watched – it was how we connected as a family.”

After finishing school, he studied a Bachelor of Business at the University of Technology Sydney with view to working in sport.

“I knew early on I wasn’t going to be a pro athlete,” he laughs. “But I wanted to stay in the world of sport – and I was always drawn to numbers, patterns, and understanding why people watch what they watch.”

Aari’s first break came at SBS, working in ad sales during the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

“That was the first moment I got to see what a career in sport could look like – the scale of it, the excitement, the impact. After that, I knew I had to find a way in full time.

"And the only place that I could get that was to get a job at Fox Sports.”

In 2012, after applying to Fox Sports several times, he landed a role as a TV Ratings Analyst.

“Just keep trying,” is his advice to others looking to enter the industry. “A lot of people see where I’ve gotten to in my career, but they don’t see that I got rejected at first– I think three, maybe more times – before finally getting the opportunity to interview and being hired for that entry-level role in TV ratings analytics.

“Back then it was all about overnight linear ratings – streaming didn’t exist. It was just broadcast television, and I used to run all the ratings reports.

“But I didn’t want to just send out spreadsheets and think, ‘that’s my job done.’ I was hungry to get involved and do more. I would proactively put together insight packs and go and talk to people and say, ‘Here’s what I’m seeing – here’s what I think we could do with it.’

“Everyone was really open to hearing from me, and then I started getting invited to present those insights every week at senior leadership meetings.

“I was still pretty junior, but I was presenting to Patrick Delany and the executive team every week. That was huge for my professional development – not just presenting, but also hearing what they had to say, the questions they asked, what mattered to them. I was learning from people years ahead of the path I wanted to go down.

"So it was a fantastic opportunity for me. It shaped how I think to this day.”

Aari’s role in analytics put him in exactly the right place to identify the shift to a streaming-led future.

“We saw the trends of the younger generation shifting to streaming,” he explains. “We were seeing younger viewers disconnect from broadcast, and it was clear we needed to pivot fast.

“I was part of the group that helped build the case for Kayo and later BINGE. That was probably the first time I felt like I was really influencing the future of the business.”

Aari’s abilities, work ethic and love for sports broadcasting led to a steady progression of promotions in that team, ultimately taking on leadership responsibilities as Fox Sports Australia’s Manager, Analytics & Insights.

“I was definitely ready for it. I think having that exposure to senior leaders, being proactive and talking to people in different departments, always asking questions, and basically loving what I was doing helped.

“My team was fantastic, and I’m proud to have hired some really good people with the help of some great people in the business.

"And having grown through the ranks in that team from entry-level myself, I had the skills to teach them what they needed to do.”

One of the initiatives Aari helped lead was combining set-top box data and streaming data into a single customer view.

“That allowed us to support our partners and Foxtel Media in a much more targeted way. We weren’t just reporting what had happened – we were forecasting what could happen next, and how we could make it work harder. So within a short amount of time, I was able to share the skills I’d learnt and find ways of bringing revenue into the business, which was fascinating.

“This work is continuing now with Mark Diprose, my former analytics teammate and now Foxtel Media colleague leading it. I get to say, I helped bring this project into the business. I got to change the game with a friend. And we’re doing something huge – not just for the company, but for the industry.

“Throughout my time in analytics, I really enjoyed sharing my insights with sporting partners – whether that was through scheduling changes, game time slots or new initiatives. Seeing those results play out was really rewarding. The same applied internally with our productions – having that opportunity to contribute insights and then see them actioned was a proud moment.”

A new challenge and a lateral career move

“After nearly a decade in analytics, I felt ready for a new challenge.”

“I felt like I’d done what I set out to do in that space – I’d grown the team, led change, and had the opportunity to present to and learn from some of the best leaders in the business,” Aari explains. “But I was ready to challenge myself in a different way.”

That next challenge came in the form of a lateral career growth move – stepping into the Sports Content Acquisitions and Partnerships team.

“I’d been working closely with the Acquisitions team on performance insights and content valuation. I knew the rights, I knew the data, and I was already across a lot of the strategy. So when an opportunity opened up, I felt ready.

“Rebecca McCloy, Adam Howarth, Nic Goard – the leaders of our team – gave me an opportunity to move into Acquisitions. I found a group of people that were willing to back me, and we have similar values, work ethic and alignment on what we want to achieve. It’s a fantastic team – and one driven by passion.”

The move gave Aari the chance to work directly with some of Foxtel Group’s biggest partners such as the NRL, AFL, Cricket Australia, Netball Australia and Supercars and be involved in long-term strategic planning around scheduling, competition formats and audience growth.

“Working in the Sports Content Acquisitions and Partnerships team, one of our key objectives is to acquire sports content for Foxtel Group, and using our relationships with partners, work with them to grow their sport and in turn audiences watching on our platforms.

“In my previous role, I was heavily involved with internal teams, but in acquisitions, you’re talking to partners directly as a core part of the role. And I think that’s where my background in analytics helps. Especially now with the shift to Kantar – I can answer their questions clearly and quickly. I can help them make sense of the data. That makes me feel useful.”

One project he’s especially proud of is leading the rollout of AFL pre-season practice matches on Kayo Sports and Foxtel.

“These were matches that never would have been broadcast a few years ago – but we knew there was appetite from hardcore fans,” he says. “We had these amazing Super Saturday AFL rights kicking off in 2025, and it was a great opportunity.”

With his strong knowledge of the business and who’s who, he was able to bring together multiple departments to deliver this content to our lineup.

“I loved working with all different departments in the business – from setting up the production and the graphics to marketing, satellite operations, editorial, sales, programming and scheduling.

"And I loved seeing people tune in, because they wanted to see their team’s full story.

“We gave customers access not just when the AFL Premiership season started, but from the moment players got on the training park. We extended the season into 12 months of content – letting fans see the combinations, the players, and what their team is building towards.

“For Foxtel Group, it further differentiates our coverage. We’re not just here for the premiership competitions. We’re also here for the pre-season, the lead-up. True fans want to watch that.”

While the move into Sports Content Acquisitions and Partnerships required learning new skills, Aari believes his analytical grounding has remained a key asset.

“With the industry moving to Kantar and the growing demand for data literacy across all content decisions, being able to interpret and communicate data clearly has made a big difference. It’s given me confidence in negotiations and in advising partners.”

He also enjoys giving back to the community through his work with the Clontarf Foundation.  

“We stream matches involving Indigenous youth teams through Kayo Freebies. They get to play before big NRL matches, and their families can watch from home.

“It means they get to see themselves on the same platform that showcases the superstars of the game – the best athletes in the world. As someone who grew up in a sporting household, I know how special that is. It makes me proud to work at Foxtel Group.”

A game changing future

For Aari, the next chapter is about continuing to grow, working on the things he loves – and helping the industry grow with him.

“For someone who grew up loving both Aussie codes and European football, to be working in partnerships and acquisitions as Foxtel Group joins the DAZN family is really exciting,” he says. “DAZN is a global streaming powerhouse, reaching an audience of 300 million across 200 markets.

“Seeing the European sports that I love to watch on our platforms, and to be involved in bringing them to Australian fans, is incredible.

“And when it comes to the Aussie codes, Foxtel Group has done an exceptional job of championing and growing their audience in Australia.”

This year, Aari was also selected to be part of Foxtel Group’s Game Changers cohort. This professional development program for emerging leadership talent is part of our investment in our people as a critical enable for our success.

“The best part of Game Changers has been the opportunity to get to know other future leaders from all across Foxtel Group,” he says. “When I joined the group, there were a lot of people I didn’t know. That surprises me because I’m someone who has always made an effort to go outside my remit to meet people across the business. It was fantastic to connect with new colleagues and get to know what they’re working on.”

For those looking to follow Aari’s career path, be it moving up the ladder in their current role or making a lateral career growth move into another area of the business, his advice is to go above and beyond, ask for feedback, get to know people and most importantly love what you do.

“To excel in your career, you need to go above and beyond your job description,” he explains. “Push yourself to do a bit more. People notice and appreciate it.

“And ask for feedback. Always ask ‘What am I doing well?’ and ‘What can I do better?’

“Building your network is also important,” Aari says. “Make the effort to meet people. Find a mentor who you can learn from and who can guide you towards the path that you want to take.

“Ultimately, I just try to have fun and be helpful. In partnerships, people can tell when you love what you’re doing. I love talking to our partners and working with them, so I think that comes across and helps build those relationships.

“Whether it’s grassroots or global, what matters most is creating access and making sure the audience feels connected. That’s what I’ve always tried to do – whether through analytics, acquisitions or partnerships.

“With Foxtel Group joining the DAZN family, we’re now in a position to be able to do more to grow all of those things. That’s what I’m passionate about and excited to be part of – bringing more sports content to our platforms, and helping Australian codes go global.”

And of course, there’s one more thing on his radar.

“The Bulldogs are going very well this year,” Aari adds. “I’m also excited about that.”

When asked if they’re going to win, Aari doesn’t hesitate: “Yes.”

Then he pauses – and the analyst in him reappears.

“Well – they’ll be in the grand final based on the start of the season. All the data points to them being there at the end of the year.

“I think they can lift the trophy.”