Premier League, Sky and BT slammed for no TV announcement

  • Sky Sports and BT will aim to announce the February TV games next week 
  • The selections were not finalised so they could not announce it on Tuesday 
  • They have blamed the extended fall-out of moving Tottenham against West Ham 

The Premier League, Sky Sports and BT Sport have been accused of a failure to multi-task after failing to hit their planned TV fixtures release date for a third month in a row.

Sky and BT will look to announce the split of February’s TV games next week after struggling to reach an agreement having already had trouble over the December and January fixtures.

The league vowed to attempt to publish updated February fixtures by Tuesday, December 12, but have been unable to do so without the selections being finalised.

Channels and the Premier League have been slammed over the delayed fixture announcement

The extended fall-out from the moving of Tottenham against West Ham, which was switched from New Year’s Eve to January 4 on just 27 days’ notice earlier this month, is believed to be to blame.

The game was moved for a second time after the original date would have left Spurs playing in front of a reduced crowd due to travel issues on December 31.

But the situation has left supporters of all 20 Premier League clubs waiting and unable to commit to travel plans with train prices rising.

February features three rounds of Premier League fixtures with the TV games set to include Tottenham vs Arsenal, Arsenal vs Manchester City and Manchester United vs Chelsea.

The north London derby between Tottenham and Arsenal is one of the February games

The north London derby between Tottenham and Arsenal is one of the February games

Katrina Law of the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust told Sportsmail: ‘Saying the latest announcement has been delayed because of fallout from the proposed New Year’s Eve game between Spurs and West Ham seems a bit of an odd reason.

‘That was one game, and there are only three rounds of picks this time. Are the Premier League and the broadcasters unable to multitask?

TV ANNOUNCEMENT SCHEDULE 
Period of matches covered Planned date of announcement Actual date of announcement
August and September July 10 July 6
October to November August 11 August 11
December October 12 October 19
January October 12 November 4
February December 12 ???
March January 25 ???
April February 26 ???
May April 6 ???
Matchweek 38 After all clubs have played 37 matches ???

‘Or should we note that one of the games in this window is the North London Derby, a game that may be considered for a move to Friday night or late Saturday afternoon and which would therefore be of concern to police and safety bodies?’

Law added: ‘Having announced the dates when TV picks would be confirmed at the start of the season, the Premier League has again failed to meet their own deadline.

‘We have advised them to communicate clearly with fans to tell them why the delay has occurred, and when the fixture changes for February will be confirmed. The onus is on them to communicate with supporters.’

The Premier League schedule for February is complicated by the presence of the Carabao Cup final, due to be held on the last Sunday of the month, with the finalists not yet known.

Champions League and Europa League knock-out ties will reduce the scope to hold Friday night games involving the ‘Big Six’ teams. 

The Premier League has failed to meet its own deadline for the third month in a row

The Premier League has failed to meet its own deadline for the third month in a row



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