The English Football League (EFL) has been accused of ‘deliberately misleading’ clubs after fixtures from English soccer’s lower leagues were allowed to be streamed live domestically on Saturday afternoon.
A regulation enforced by the Football Association prohibits matches in England from being live broadcast during 2:45pm and 5:15pm on Saturday afternoons to encourage attendances at games. But starting this season, the EFL has allowed non-televised matches from League One and League Two – the third and fourth tiers of the professional game in England – to be streamed online overseas, while games that do not take place on Saturday afternoons have been live streamed in the United Kingdom for a pay-per-match fee via the EFL’s iFollow platform.
Some clubs were unaware, however, that the domestic blackout didn’t apply during international weekends, and were surprised when supporters in the United Kingdom and Ireland were able to watch live coverage of Football League action – either on the iFollow service or their respective club-maintained alternatives during this weekend’s round of matches.
Andy Holt, chairman of League One club Accrington Stanley, said on Twitter: “This kills our income and destroys atmosphere. It was only international viewers when we considered it first. Then they added Tuesday night matches.”
“The option to join with five international weekends has never been mentioned by @EFL. They deliberately misled us. They know what they’re doing, don’t worry about that.”
A statement from the club declared: “The EFL is there to represent its 72 member clubs, and Mr Holt feels that Article 48 of the Uefa statutes [which deals with broadcast regulations] was not discussed at the summer conference in Portugal, with no debate taking place regarding any exceptions to the existing blackout on domestic coverage of Saturday afternoon fixtures.”
The EFL subsequently issued a statement which read: “The EFL is very aware of the importance of protecting the live matchday experience and will always champion supporters making their way through turnstiles as the best way to watch live football, but [streaming] is an added option for those fans who can’t make the game in person.
“The EFL needs to understand the full value of the streaming opportunity to make informed decisions and the matches taking place tomorrow will help determine the future direction of travel… The review will be shared and discussed with clubs.”