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Manchester City supporters in the UK will be unable to watch their side’s clash with West Ham United in the Premier League on television this weekend.
The Blues returned to winning ways last Sunday when they beat Leicester City 2-0 at the King Power Stadium. Savinho and Erling Haaland scored timely goals for Pep Guardiola’s side as they eased some pressure after a dreadful run of results.
City sit four points outside the top four and will welcome an Irons team this weekend who are currently languishing in mid-table under their relatively new manager, Julen Lopetegui. Fans hoping to catch the action on Sky Sports or TNT Sports this weekend will be disappointed to discover that they will not be able to.
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The clash between the two teams will kick-off at 3pm on Saturday, January 4 after not being selected by the major UK broadcasters for live coverage. By kicking off at 3pm on a Saturday, the match falls in the middle of the FA’s ‘Blackout’.
The ‘Blackout’ stops matches that kick-off at 3pm on a Saturday from being broadcast live in the UK on television. This is an initiative pushed by the lower leagues who fear that casual supporters will not attend their matches if a big Premier League game is played at the same time and is televised.
In the modern age, some fans have criticised the insistence of the ‘Blackout’ suggesting that all it does is push supporters towards illegal streaming. For context, all matches in the Premier League, regardless of kick-off time, are available to watch live abroad.
From next season, all matches in the Premier League that are not played at 3pm on a Saturday will be available to watch live in the UK. This shall make matches that were previously moved to Sunday at 2pm due to European commitments, available in the UK when currently they are not.