Premier League chiefs are facing increasing issues around the 3pm blackout as fan frustration grows and authorities are forced to get involved.
The make-up of a Saturday for a football fan is simple. If your team kick-off at 3pm you either go to the game, provided you can get a ticket in an era where they are increasingly at a premium, or you're forced to keep tabs in other ways that don't involve live action.
3pm games aren't shown and haven't been since the 1960s. It leaves fans to either keep track of the score via Twitter, radio or goals shows like Soccer Saturday. Highlights will be provided for broadcasters after full-time whilst there's always Match of the Day late on Saturday night - but does all that need to change?
The cost of living is on the rise, leaving less disposable income to spend on a day out at the football. The likes of Sky and BT Sport are also far from cheap, pricing out some people and leaving them to miss out.
Why does the 3pm blackout exist?
The decision was made during the 1960s, at a time when the TV became a regular appliance in most households. Clubs were of the opinion that allowing fixtures to be televised on Saturday afternoons would have reduce the attendance figures up and down the country.
Football's popularity remains sky high and stadiums, especially Premier League ones, sell out amid a huge demand for tickets - some teams could sell their grounds twice over. Nevertheless, the 3pm rule remains as it falls under Article 48 of the UEFA Statues, which allows leagues to designate a “closed window” for broadcasting.
The Premier League insist Article 48 is there to “protect attendances throughout the English football pyramid”. A spokesperson for the Football Association previously told Mirror Football : “It is important to create a balance between live football on television whilst also protecting attendance figures at matches and participation levels in the grassroots game.”
There appears to be little appetite from those at the top of the Premier League to change the current rules with chief executive Richard Masters previously stating: “We’ve been proponents of Article 48 for the entire period of the Premier League, and I don’t see that changing in the near term.”
Those at the FA are less rigid and appear open to change having previously said: “Any change to the current position would only be done in consultation with all of our football partners."
What happens if you ignore the blackout?
The only way to do that in the UK is by doing so illegally, yet thousands of people choose to take the risk. The Premier League appeared to break rank and pursued a group who had made more than £7m by offering a package that allowed fans to watch 3pm kick-offs.
Mark Gould led the service and has been hit with an 11-year jail sentence whilst those who assisted were handed sentences that ranged from three to five years. Police, earlier this year, had visited around 1,000 home that had been identified as using illegal streams. Individuals were made aware that they faced prosecution if they continued to utilise the services or " fire sticks" that can access 3pm kick-offs.
Police and investigators believe illegal streaming sites can be linked with organised crime gangs, with advertising on the web generating funds; which explains the crackdown on subscription-based apps on TV sticks.
It is unlikely that the threat will impact users though, with one of the investigators who played a part in the recent ruling admitting they are seeking the distributors rather than those who simply watch games.
What about fans being prosecuted?
One of the investigators who played a part in this week's prosecution has admitted that fans are unlikely to be charged for simply watching the streams - and that their focus is on prosecuting the sellers instead.
Doug Love, Senior Trading Standards Officer at Hammersmith and Fulham Council, told BBC Radio 5 Live: "Investigations are going on all the time. This kind of crime has to be countered. If it was left unchecked, sports and society would not be recognisable.
"Consumers are committing an offence by watching the streams if they know they're illegal, but we're looking for distributors. I believe some individuals have been approached and given letters saying please stop using these streams, but no one is likely to be prosecuted just for watching."
On the sentencing of five top distributors this week, Love added: "It was very much a partnership this prosecution. The Premier League came to trading standards having already gathered initial evidence about the principal offender Mark Gould and they asked us to get involved and investigate."
