The Premier League, Sky Sports and BT Sport achieved the seemingly impossible in October, uniting football fans in opposition to the new pay-per-view (PPV) model that charges viewers £14.95 per game on top of their subscription fees, in order to watch matches that wouldn’t otherwise be televised.
The move has drawn a furious response from fans, who already have to pay for a Sky Sports subscription, a BT subscription and an Amazon Prime subscription in order to tune into Premier League games.
The self-inflicted reputational damage is difficult to overstate, and there have been widespread calls for the pay-per-view model to be ditched.
Have Premier League pay-per-view games been scrapped?
The Premier League is yet to write pay-per-view games off as an ill-advised experiment, but has said that its future will be reviewed in November.
‘In consultation with clubs, all elements of the pay-per-view service, including the price, will be reviewed ahead of Premier League matches returning after the international break later next month,’ it announced on October 29.
The final round of Premier League fixtures before the international break will take place on November 8, and the following gameweek is set to get underway on November 21.
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What are the Premier League PPV viewing figures?
Viewing figures for the pay-per-view matches that have aired so far haven’t been officially revealed, but it’s been reported that an average of 39,000 people have paid for each of the PPV matches, hitting the Premier League’s target.
Thousands of fans have, however, instead made £14.95 donations to charities and food banks instead, with regular updates being shared via the #BoycottPPV and #CharityNotPPV hashtags on Twitter.
Could the Premier League pay-per-view price change?
It has been rumoured that one of the points of discussion in November’s consultation meeting could be the potential reduction of the pay-per-view price from £14.95 to £10.
Mike Ashley, the controversial owner of Newcastle United – one of 19 Premier League clubs to vote in favour of the pay-per-view model, Leicester City the only club to vote against the measures – has called for the price to be dropped to £4.95.
Newcastle only this week agreed to start refunding season-ticket holders who have been unable to attend any matches this season.
What are the upcoming Premier League PPV fixtures?
There will be five more pay-per-view matches before the November consultation: three on Sky Sports Box Office and two on BT Sport Box office. They are as follows:
Friday, November 6
- 5.30pm – Brighton vs Burnley (Sky Sports Box Office)
Saturday, November 7
- 3pm – Crystal Palace vs Leeds (BT Sport Box Office)
- 8pm – West Ham vs Fulham (BT Sport Box Office)
Sunday, November 8
- 12pm – West Brom vs Tottenham (Sky Sports Box Office)
- 7.15pm – Arsenal vs Aston Villa (Sky Sports Box Office)
