Championship and Sky to SCRAP 3pm football blackout in August
The 3pm football blackout has been scrapped by the EFL and Sky Sports for the opening weekend of the season with every game set to be broadcast.
It is part of a new deal that will see the broadcaster increase its live coverage by 50 per cent from next season.
The £935m deal will involve 1,000 matches being shown from the second tier Championship downwards and includes a commitment to show every one of the involved 72 clubs at least 20 times in a season.
Sky Sports have said they “take seriously” the responsibility to not chop and change kick-off times at short notice, which has angered fans in recent years.
Jonathan Licht, managing director at Sky Sports, said: “Exceptional sport, covered in an innovative and compelling way, has been a big part of our history.
“Despite what some think, we take the responsibility seriously. We would confidently say that we select matches in a timely way, and that there is something of a black hole where we don’t see the discussion with safety officials, police and other competitions.
“That is getting more complicated and is taking more time. We will work to give as much notice as possible to fans.”
A year later, from the 2025-26 season, there will also be extended coverage of the Premier League with an extra 100 matches per year taking Sky’s total to 215 in each campaign.