Daily Mail: The FA are considering DROPPING the 3pm blackout for FA Cup fixtures

Story from Daily Mail:

The FA are considering dropping the 3pm Saturday television blackout for FA Cup matches from 2025 in an attempt to boost the value of the competition's TV rights.

The Premier League remain in favour of keeping their matches off television on Saturday afternoons, while the EFL have yet to make their minds up on the controversial issue despite inviting broadcasters to bid for 3pm kick-offs in their TV rights auction for 2024-25 onwards that is currently taking place.

The FA are also understood to be open to dropping the black-out for their own competition however in the belief that selling more matches would generate greater revenue, which is passed on the clubs and the grassroots game.

Under the current four-year deal with the BBC and ITV a maximum of eight FA Cup ties in each round were broadcast live this season, with only four at weekends due to the blackout restrictions, which prevent any television coverage between 2.45pm and 5.15pm on Saturdays.

The FA will begin negotiations with broadcasters this summer for the next rights cycle beginning in 2025-26, with Wembley executives convinced they will land a far better deal if 3pm kick-offs can be sold. Removing the blackout is likely to invite bids from the new generation of streaming services in additional to traditional broadcasters, which would increase the price.

Lower division clubs are likely to welcome the move as it would lead to increases in prize and appearance money, which they feel is currently too skewed towards the big clubs who make the latter stages.

Lifting the blackout for the FA Cup only would be far less disruptive to English football than if the Premier League or EFL removed it, as FA Cup ties only take place on five weekends each year from the first-round proper.

The Premier League's support for the blackout is based on their belief that televising only half of the top-flight's matches increases their value, as well as a desire to preserve the model of collective selling and protect live attendances.

Significantly the Premier League's current rights holders, Sky Sports and BT Sport, are also in favour of maintaining the blackout.

With 1,656 matches each season compared to the Premier League's 380 the EFL are exploring an alternative model and have received bids from several streaming companies including DAZN and Viaplay, but have yet to make a decision on how to proceed.

Their current deal with Sky Sports allows 138 games to be shown live each year, plus the end-of-season play-offs.