The Premier League will preserve UK blackouts; the EFL wants to get rid of them
Premier League broadcast blackouts seem to be here to stay in the United Kingdom. For decades, the English Premier League has blacked out games at 3 p.m. local time on Saturday afternoons. Despite the English Football League's (EFL) desire to end the blackouts, Premier League CEO Richard Masters has guaranteed that they would continue.
"We've been proponents of Article 48 for the entire period of the Premier League and I don’t see that changing in the near term," Masters said of the blackout restrictions.
Blackouts in the UK Premier League are intended to safeguard stadium attendance
Article 48 of UEFA's regulation permits participating countries to restrict matches on TV during specified time intervals. The only countries that follow this regulation are the United Kingdom, Scotland, and Montenegro. UEFA now has 53 member countries as members.
Blackouts have been employed in the United Kingdom to help safeguard stadium attendance during events. Yet, media rights agreements have compelled soccer fans in the United Kingdom to purchase numerous TV subscriptions. To watch live Premier League matches, Premier League fans must have access to BT Sport, Sky Sports, and Amazon Prime Video.
When blackouts remain in effect in the United Kingdom, spectators in many other countries may watch all Premier League games. Soccer fans in the United States may watch every English Premier League match through the USA network and Peacock Premium.
The EFL is presently negotiating their new television contract
The EFL has begun discussions for their new media rights agreement. Conventional networks such as Sky Sports, as well as new businesses such as Facebook, Netflix, Google, Apple, and Amazon, are said to be in the running for a prospective agreement. Sky now has EFL broadcast rights in the UK for roughly $142 million each season. For the following transaction, a new suitor may have to double this sum.
ESPN+ now broadcasts EFL Championship games in the United States on a regular basis.
