Saturday 3pm blackout to end?

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Hope so

Beware the law of unintended consequences.

It was always going to happen from the minute streaming games became a thing.

People sniffing profit is a driver in everything.

Hope not , that would be a bad move

It would be good for me who can not get to any games because of poor health.

On the down side it will effect gates so the price must cover the missing fans who will stop attending games at the park.

On the up side we won't have to spend millions on a new ground.

Quoted from grimsby pete

It would be good for me who can not get to any games because of poor health.

On the down side it will effect gates so the price must cover the missing fans who will stop attending games at the park.

On the up side we won't have to spend millions on a new ground.

The same applies to me, but I wonder if the £10 will rise because the EFL will want a cut.

I’m not entirely sure how I feel about it.

I understand the argument that it could hit gates, although we won’t know until we try long term I guess, but I also undetand that many a fan can’t attend for whatever reason and therefore this still provides a platform for them to see games…

Let's be fair. It's very easy now to get hold of a dodgy stick / app at a cheap price so anyone who's not bothered about going and would rather watch online mostly do already surely?
I paid £30 and I have a whole year of free efl live games, sky, bt, movies etc... I still pay for mariners TV just so I'm giving something to town still though.

Have to move with the times. Resistance to technology is pointless! It's an extra income stream for the clubs and should benefit us with our relatively large exile following.

With no 3 pm Saturday blackout there will no longer be a reason to play games at 3pm on Saturday

Quoted from HerveJosse

With no 3 pm Saturday blackout there will no longer be a reason to play games at 3pm on Saturday

There’s no real reason now, hence why there’s always a number of games that KO at random times.

The blackout won’t affect KO times, the concern seems to be focused on attendances which is understandable but I guess theres little evidence to call upon.

I suspect we won't be hurt too badly, but small clubs near big cities will be screwed. I guess that's one way for us to climb the leagues

Quoted from aldi_01

There’s no real reason now, hence why there’s always a number of games that KO at random times.

The blackout won’t affect KO times, the concern seems to be focused on attendances which is understandable but I guess theres little evidence to call upon.

Current EFL rules require games to kick off between 11.30am and 3.15pm on a Saturday expect that will go if the blackout goes

Quoted from HerveJosse

Current EFL rules require games to kick off between 11.30am and 3.15pm on a Saturday expect that will go if the blackout goes

So basically, we play at 3 because we always have done, and nothing really about the blackout.

As stated, this could affect those on the periphery of a big city, surrounded by bigger clubs but then again, they’re probably already affected by it so all it’s really doing is opening an income stream for clubs, whether we agree is irrelevant, we know they’ll take no notice and look at the cash…

The traditionalist in me hates the idea of removing this blackout and the prospect of games getting played at any other time than 3pm on a Saturday.

But these are rules that are donkeys years old.  We have to move with the times and the clubs that think on their feet with this change will still survive and prosper.  

Just like how home taping didn't kill the record industry, I don't think streaming of games at 3pm will kill football either.

It definitely opens up new potential options for us (and other clubs to explore).  Whilst 3pm on a Saturday does suit a lot of us, it could well be that 7:45pm on a Friday evening suits more of us.  Or even Sunday at 1pm.  Selfishly, I think I'd actually prefer home games on a Friday evening.  I've always preferred evening games and my Saturday's are often completely dominated by a 90 minute game. Friday fixtures would give me back my whole weekend.  But that's not likely to be the case for most.

We've a shitload of exiles, I'm not sure if it's proportionate to other clubs but it certainly feels like we've got an awful lot.  That's a big income stream we could tap into for streaming of games.  

Whatever changes are coming and happen, the key is going to be making sure the numbers coming through the gate don't dwindle.  That has to be about making the experience once in the ground the best it possibly can be.

We need to remember the cost of living is going up massively and this means a day out at the football is not doable for many families now and attendances will naturally fall away, banishing the blackout will enable clubs like ours to tap into a exiled fan base and get much needed revenue. There is nothing like the real thing when it comes to footy and watching on a screen is never going to be as good as being there live but for many people it's going to be harder and harder to attend. I don't think our club will suffer and also may make a few extra quid

I think it will affect attendances over time, for people brought up on always going to the game that may be want they want to do. But for people who are youngsters now it may, possibly, affect it if they just get used to the idea of watching on a stream, or even worse just watch premiershite at that time instead.
And the risk is then as time goes on fewer people go, so less of an atmosphere so less reason to go in person and so on.

Whether the outcome will lose money overall or not though I'm not sure but it is possible.

In my opinion this is not an easy decision, once the die is cast there will be no going back, even If clubs at our level lose out.

Quoted from diehardmariner

The traditionalist in me hates the idea of removing this blackout and the prospect of games getting played at any other time than 3pm on a Saturday.

But these are rules that are donkeys years old.  We have to move with the times and the clubs that think on their feet with this change will still survive and prosper.  

Just like how home taping didn't kill the record industry, I don't think streaming of games at 3pm will kill football either.

It definitely opens up new potential options for us (and other clubs to explore).  Whilst 3pm on a Saturday does suit a lot of us, it could well be that 7:45pm on a Friday evening suits more of us.  Or even Sunday at 1pm.  Selfishly, I think I'd actually prefer home games on a Friday evening.  I've always preferred evening games and my Saturday's are often completely dominated by a 90 minute game. Friday fixtures would give me back my whole weekend.  But that's not likely to be the case for most.

We've a shitload of exiles, I'm not sure if it's proportionate to other clubs but it certainly feels like we've got an awful lot.  That's a big income stream we could tap into for streaming of games.  

Whatever changes are coming and happen, the key is going to be making sure the numbers coming through the gate don't dwindle.  That has to be about making the experience once in the ground the best it possibly can be.

It's not about moving games to a different time, it's about allowing teams to stream the matches to a UK audience. 3pm Saturday will still be match time for the EFL. It's already easy to get around the blackout, so might aswell make it official from our point of view. I'm sure lots of other clubs are against it since they'll be hit harder. Our large exile population means we'll definitely benefit as long as it doesn't reduce bums on seats

Quoted from pen penfras

It's not about moving games to a different time, it's about allowing teams to stream the matches to a UK audience. 3pm Saturday will still be match time for the EFL. It's already easy to get around the blackout, so might aswell make it official from our point of view. I'm sure lots of other clubs are against it since they'll be hit harder. Our large exile population means we'll definitely benefit as long as it doesn't reduce bums on seats

Yes, but I was replying to a handful of comments regards then moving away from the traditional 3pm kick-off times.

I also think the removal of the blackout will start the ball rolling in EFL clubs picking and choosing when they kick-off.  My understanding is, at present, permission has to be sought to deviate from that time-frame (TV games included).  In five years time, I think the EFL fixture list could look a lot like the Premier League one, more games kicking off outside a 3pm Sat window than those that do.  

Having read more around this it is clear that the EFL are not considering lifting the black out so that clubs can take the benefit of their own streaming revenue but so the tv rights can be offered to the large streamers Eg Amazon , Netflix as an alternative to the satellite providers the difference being the streaming giants can offer multiple games at the same time hence the need for the blackout to go. How this benefits us is far less clear then being in receipt of  your own revenues generated.

My understanding has always been that this is, in theory, to open up the market for showing more or making more, as stated, from online platforms and the likes.

Time will tell I guess…

Never had a Saturday 3 pm blackout. All games are available abroad already.
They are there if you know where to look.

Quoted from Morris Minor

Never had a Saturday 3 pm blackout. All games are available abroad already.
They are there if you know where to look.

Never? It will have been to find live coverage of a Town match at 3pm on a Saturday, in the Algarve in 1986 I’d have imagined.

Dependant on the particulars of how this comes about and what opens up in terms of TV/Streaming rights and any money the Club may see from it, I'm interested to see which direction the Club will go with ticket prices.

One train of thought is that if the attendances fall due to the ability to stream at home more readily and easily than present (IPTV, VPN etc) then the Club would likely need to raise ticket prices to balance the sheet. My logic goes that this would turn more people away and towards the streaming option, making it detrimental to the atmosphere and the 'feel' of the match as we know it today.

The other train of thought is that - especially if there is a better financial package with a new way of working - the Club could lower ticket prices in order to compete with the 'easier option' in respect to getting fans into the ground. One logic suggests that lower prices offers more attraction to actually being at the game and could lead to an increase in attendance beyond what we've already seen this season.

At this moment there is a million and one different ways it could potentially go and until more details are known as to what the Clubs get out of the change it's hard to really gauge how this will go. My only hope is that however they structure the move it doesn't impact on the magic of being at a game. I know this comes down to the individual fans perspective but it would be so sad to see Clubs attendances dwindle because people would rather watch at home if the option becomes easy and cheap enough as a a result of the change.