sport news More Premier League clubs want 3pm blackout to be lifted ahead of next rights ... trends now
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A growing number of Premier League clubs want the 3pm TV blackout to be lifted ahead of the next domestic rights auction in a move that influential figures within the industry regard as increasingly inevitable.
The EFL’s decision to make all of their matches on the opening weekend of next season including 3pm Saturday kick-offs available for live broadcasts, which was confirmed by Sky Sports on Wednesday, is seen as a significant step that will be seized upon by Premier League owners eager to increase their TV revenues.
The EFL’s TV bonanza does not involve lifting the historic 3pm Saturday blackout, as under article 48 of UEFA Statutes it only applies when 50 per cent of Premier League and Championship matches are due to kick-off at that time.
The EFL starts a week before the Premier League next season on the weekend of 10/11 August, with Sky Sports deciding to capitalise by screening all 36 matches to coincide with the launch of Sky Sports+, a new service which will give viewers access to up to 100 live streams of sporting events at the same time.
Sky could theoretically have televised last Saturday’s 3pm Premier League kick-offs without breaching the blackout as the final
