Premier League games available to watch for free on television are set to be cut next season despite fans still being unable to attend matches.
With the 2020/21 Premier League season kicking off on September 12, matches will continue to be played behind-closed-doors for at least the first three weeks of the campaign and even after that, capacity crowds still look a long way off.
However, The Times reports that the unprecedented period during which a third of all Premier League matches were televised on free-to-air channels will not continue.
The league will also stop allowing all matches to be shown live in this country, instead setting a limit of just over half of games.
All 92 of the matches played from the restart in June were televised live either for free or on subscription channels, which was also unprecedented for the league.
That move came as a result of government pressure as pubs and restaurants were closed, and people could not visit friends’ houses due to strict social distancing guidelines.
But The Times is now reporting that the league’s prevailing view is that the arrangements put in place in June were for a period where the COVID-19 restrictions in society were much greater than they are now.
Sky, which owns the largest chunk of live broadcasting rights, showed some matches on non-subscription channels, while the BBC screened Premier League matches live for the first time.
Mass gatherings at sports grounds were banned in March but Prime Minister Boris Johnson said this month that the government were hopeful of crowds returning after test events next month.
It has been suggested that stadiums will be only 30 percent to 50 percent full when crowds are allowed back.
Premier League clubs discussed bringing fans back during a meeting on July 24. League officials want to offer up pre-season games for test events next month or in September.
The hope is to get supporters back as soon as possible but safety is also paramount for the league.
