A long-held tradition within English football could soon come to an end as the Premier League and English Football League prepare to begin talks about a significant shift within the sport.
According to The Guardian, the two footballing bodies are set to hold talks early next year about allowing 3pm matches to be broadcasted on live television.
The 3pm blackout rule has been in effect since 1960s and it currently prevents football matches from being shown on UK television between 2.45pm and 5.15pm on Saturdays.
The policy was introduced to encourage fans to attend lower league games and comes into effect when 50 per cent of fixtures in the Premier League and Championship are scheduled to kick-off at 3pm. It also applies to the Scottish Premiership and SPFL
The UK is the only place where the 3pm blackout applies in Europe and the Premier League and EFL are reportedly looking to increase their revenue. As a result they will hold discussions about selling all their games to domestic broadcasters in the next rights cycle.
The Premier League and EFL want an early agreement before the next tender for television rights begin – with their current contracts expiring at the end of the 2028-29 season.
The 3pm blackout rule could be abolished in the Premier League from the 2029-30 season
If that does happen then the English Football League would also remove the long-standing rule
However, the Guardian report that the EFL are planning to begin bidding rights in 2027 and are keen to know what they can offer – hence early discussions with the Premier League.
At present, the EFL’s deal with Sky Sports is worth £935m over five years. Sky Sports exclusively broadcasts 1,059 games each season across the Championship, League One, League Two, the Carabao Cup and EFL Trophy.
The Premier League’s £6.7billion deal sees 270 games shown per campaign with TNT Sports showing a minimum of 52 a season and Sky Sports showing the rest.
The move to abolish through the 3pm blackout rule is supported by the majority of the Premier League clubs’ American owners – as that is a model that is applied to US sports.
Speaking in October, Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said the future of the blackout is up for debate.
‘There are no more games outside of 3pm that aren’t being broadcast,’ he said. ‘We are committed to it for the foreseeable future. It’s not a decision that we alone make.
‘It’s done in conjunction with other football bodies, the FA and the FA. But we’re committed to it for the foreseeable future.’
Premier LeagueFootball League Championship
