Why Liverpool vs Luton Town and Manchester vs Brentford won’t be on UK TV, as two of the Premier League’s top three take on rearranged games in midweek clashes

Two of the Premier League’s top three sides are involved in rearranged games midweek – but UK viewers will not be able to catch the action live.

On Tuesday night, Manchester City welcome Brentford to the Etihad, as they try to close the four point gap to league leaders Liverpool, while a win would take them above second-placed Arsenal.

Wednesday evening sees Luton Town take the trip to Liverpool for a game that has been brought forward due to this weekend’s Carabao Cup final.

But neither match was selected for live broadcast by either of the Premier League’s live action partners, meaning that Sky Sports and TNT viewers will not be able to watch either game in the UK. 

Brentford were due to visit Manchester City in December, but the initial date was postponed due to the Club World Cup commitments of Pep Guardiola’s side.

Brentford vs Man City was on Sky earlier this month – but the reverse fixture was not selected

Luton Town’s trip to Liverpool has been brought forward from a planned 3pm Saturday kick-off

Since winning the global tournament at the end of 2023, Man City have had a game in hand compared to the other teams around them – which will be played on Tuesday night. 

Man City beat Brentford 3-1 in West London just a few weeks ago in a match televised on Sky Sports – but the reverse fixture was never selected for TV broadcast in Matchday 18, so it will not be available in the UK. 

Once Man City catch up to Liverpool, they will only have played an equal number of games for a day before the Reds go ahead again.

Their home game against Luton Town was originally scheduled for Saturday at 3pm, but was moved after Jurgen Klopp’s side reached the Carabao Cup final at Wembley on Sunday.

They have agreed to move the game forward to Wednesday, to prevent further fixture congestion down the line, but because it was never planned to be shown on UK TV as it was initially penned in for the 3pm blackout, it won’t be available to fans either.   

The blackout, brought in to boost the revenue for lower league sides, has caused arguments

The blackout is primarily in place to encourage fans to get out and watch live matches, so that teams further down the English football pyramid have a better chance of earning revenue. 

The rule came into place in the 1960s, when Burnley chairman Bob Lord convinced the Football League board that showing matches on Saturday afternoon would negatively impact attendance figures at lower league games. 

Fans were arguing over the decision to extend football’s 3pm blackout until 2029 when it was confirmed with a new TV deal back in December.