Sky Sports have taken advantage of a TV blackout loophole to make Scottish football history by broadcasting every game on the opening Premiership weekend, including the Saturday 3pm kick-off.
Historic Broadcast of All Opening Fixtures
The full list of fixtures was revealed today alongside the blockbuster announcement that all six games in matchweek one will be live on the box. It is the first time in Scottish football history that this has happened, with Dundee United set to kick off the season at home to Rangers on Friday, July 31.
There are only two games on the Saturday: Falkirk vs St Mirren at 3pm and Aberdeen vs Hearts at 5.30pm. The former caused some confusion as to how a Saturday 3pm game can be shown on TV given the UEFA blackout typically prevents it.
Understanding the Loophole
The answer is simple. The blocked broadcasting hours, laid out in Article 48 of the UEFA Statutes, typically run from the end of August until the end of April, in line with the Premier League and EFL seasons. Last year, it only took effect from August 23, meaning any game prior to that date could be shown live, even on Saturdays within normally blocked hours.
Given the Premiership season starts on the weekend of August 1, some three weeks prior to the Premier League campaign down south, there is a brief window at the beginning of the Scottish season where the blackout does not apply. Sky are free to show Saturday 3pm games on the first two matchweeks and have taken advantage of this to screen Falkirk vs St Mirren as part of a full card of coverage.
Further Broadcast Plans
The following week, Sky has selected just one game: Kilmarnock vs Celtic on Sunday, August 9, with Premier Sports picking up Rangers vs Hibs at 4pm the same day. It is not unprecedented for broadcasters to screen SPFL games within blackout hours. There are a number of exempt Saturdays, including at New Year when Sky showed the Dundee Derby at 3pm on Saturday, January 3.
The Premier League and EFL are reported to be holding talks over ending the blackout altogether as part of their next TV deal, but that is unlikely to take effect until 2029 when the current agreement expires.
