The English Premier League has agreed a new deal to show all its fixtures live on British television, but fans will have to pay extra for the privilege.
Since the coronavirus pandemic forced football behind closed doors, the Premier League has broken with years of protocol, and the competition’s business model, to show all matches live on TV. After an agreement was reached by clubs on Friday, that practice will continue for the rest of October.
But the five fixtures per match day that will now be added to the schedules will be shown only on pay-per-view. Each match is expected to cost £14.95, with revenue from the sale to go directly to clubs in lieu of match-day takings. Viewers in Ireland will be able to purchase each match for €16.95 via the Sky Sports Box Office channel.
A current monthly subscription to Sky Sports costs £33.99 while a BT Sport monthly pass is £25. The price per match is also 50 per cent more than the cost charged per match by English Football League clubs on their IFollow platform.
As yet there has been no announcement of a mechanism for allowing season ticket holders, who have paid for the 2020-2021 season but face the likely prospect of watching no games in person, to stream their games for free. The new arrangement has been agreed only until the end of the month, though it is probably a model to which the league will return if it fails in its current attempts to persuade government to allow for the return of fans.
A Premier League spokesperson said: “The Premier League has worked closely with Sky Sports and BT Sport to provide this arrangement and is grateful for their support. The agreement will be regularly reviewed in consultation with clubs and in line with any decisions made by government regarding the return of spectators to stadiums.
“Football is not the same without supporters at matches. The Premier League and our clubs remain committed to the safe return of fans as soon as possible.”
