Vincent Kompany's Burnley in high demand as Facebook, Netflix, Google, Apple and Amazon vie for TV rights
and live on Freeview channel 276
Following the EFL's recent announcement of potentially ending the Saturday 3pm TV blackout, Footy Accumulators have revealed the top 10 English Football League sides which are most in demand to watch on the screen.
Every EFL game could be broadcast from the 2024/25 season — when the current five-year agreement with Sky Sports expires — as part of a ground-breaking new TV and streaming deal, which could see the likes of Facebook, Netflix, Google, Apple and Amazon offered TV rights.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdUnder the current rules, any EFL fixture with a 3pm kick-off falls under the “blackout” rule, meaning the game cannot be shown on TV or streamed in the United Kingdom.
At the moment, only overseas fans can tune into the club’s streaming service to watch 3pm kick-offs.
However, the EFL have confirmed that an invitation to bid for live rights will be sent out to interested parties – a move which could lead to the end of the blackout.
Rights for all 1,891 matches across the League, EFL Cup, EFL Trophy and all end of season play-off matches are available for prospective bidders.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdThe EFL say they are taking ‘a fresh and new approach to this latest rights cycle’, adding that they are ‘inviting proposals that embrace innovation and offer contemporary solutions that cater for changing audience habits’.
As a result, statisticians from Footy Accumulators, a football betting community, collated data from Keyword Tool from the past 12 months, to decipher which teams had the highest number of searches.
The Clarets, currently fourth in the Championship, were top of the pile, averaging a 368k monthly search volume, followed by Birmingham City, Portsmouth, Reading and Watford, who all shared second place with monthly searches averaging 301k.
Barnsley, Blackpool and Sunderland are next in the list (246k), Luton Town (201k) follow, while Middlesbrough (165k) complete the top 10.