Premier League's pay-per-view model likely to be scrapped after this weekend

The Premier League is expected to abandon the practice of showing matches on pay-per-view, after clubs finally acknowledged their almost universal unpopularity.

A widespread backlash against payper-view saw supporter groups raise hundreds of thousands of pounds for charity rather than pay the £14.95 the league had asked fans to hand over to watch their clubs on TV.

The league’s shareholder clubs are expected to confirm a return to the model of showing all games live, with the majority on the subscription channels Sky and BT Sport, while matches continue to be played behind closed doors. In September the BBC and Amazon Prime Video also showed one match each.

Although the switch is not confirmed, with clubs still to rubber-stamp the change and get the buy-in of broadcasters, the clear expectation is that PPV will be dropped, with new plans put in place until the end of the year at the earliest.

Last month the Premier League’s chief executive, Richard Masters, said the £14.95 price was “defensible”, and BT also argued the case, saying it was only covering its costs in screening the matches. Figures for the first nine PPV matches suggested that an average of 40,000 viewers had paid, with some matches recording far smaller numbers.

The Premier League has also reiterated its position on a potential bailout of EFL clubs in financial crisis because of Covid-19. An offer of £50m in grants and loans to clubs in League One and League Two remains on the table and on Thursday the league confirmed there was also a £30m loan facility available to Championship clubs.

The terms of the loan offer would require any Championship club seeking funding to prove the impact of the pandemic on their finances.

“The offer guarantees no EFL club need go out of business as a result of the pandemic in the 2020-21 season,” the Premier League said, but EFL clubs are yet to agree to accept it.

No decision is expected before a meeting of EFL clubs next Thursday. On the same day Richard Masters, the EFL chair, Rick Parry, and Greg Clarke, the FA chairman, are to answer questions on the continued absence of a bailout agreement in front of a select committee of MPs.