Manchester United face another tough Premier League game on Wednesday evening, as Thomas Frank's Brentford travel to Old Trafford.
The Red Devils have dropped to fifth in the table after losing 2-0 to Newcastle at St James' Park on Sunday afternoon. Having said that, Erik ten Hag's side have two games in hand on Tottenham in fourth and will go above them with a draw against the Bees.
Brentford are seventh in the Premier League and have an outside chance of qualifying for Europe. As such, Wednesday evening's game promises to be one of the biggest of the season... but viewers in the UK will NOT be allowed to watch it on TV.
That is because the game is not being shown live on Sky Sports, BT Sport or Amazon Prime Video. Sky Sports will be showing West Ham vs Newcastle instead, while BT Sport will be broadcasting the Copa del Rey clash between Barcelona and Real Madrid.
As to why United's game against Brentford has been snubbed, the fixture was not selected for broadcasting back in December. It was supposed to be played on the final weekend of February but was postponed due to United reaching the Carabao Cup final.
As per the Premier League's contracts with Sky Sports, BT Sport and Amazon Prime, only a set number of games can be shown live in the UK each season. Therefore, the TV rights for this game could not be resold... much to the frustration of fans.
Do you think Manchester United's game against Brentford should be shown live on TV in the UK? Let us know in the comments below!
How does it work?
Every so often, the Premier League will agree a new TV deal with its broadcast partners. The last UK deal was struck with in May 2021 ahead of an August 2022 start date. The contract, which sees 200 games being shown each season, expires in May 2025.
These games are separated into even packages:
Package A: 32 matches to kick off at 12.30pm on Saturdays (BT Sport)
Package B: 32 matches to kick off at 5.30pm on Saturdays (Sky Sports)
Package C: 32 matches, with eight kicking off at 7.45pm on Saturdays and 24 kicking off at 2pm on Sundays (Sky Sports)
Package D: 32 matches to kick off at 4.30pm on Sundays (Sky Sports)
Package E: 32 matches, with eight kicking off on Sundays at 2pm and 24 kicking off at either 8pm on a Monday or 7.30pm-8pm on a Friday (Sky Sports)
Package F: 20 matches, with 10 from one Bank Holiday weekend and 10 from one set of midweek fixtures (Amazon Prime Video)
Package G: 20 matches, all from two different sets of midweek fixtures (BT Sport)
It is unclear if the Premier League will allow fixtures such as United's clash with Brentford to be shown live on TV in the UK when the TV rights come up for renewal ahead of August 2025. Renewal talks are expected to take place later this year or in early 2024.
On Monday evening, the English Football League (EFL) announced Sky Sports as their preferred bidder for its next set of broadcasting rights. The EFL's current deal with Sky Sports expires at the end of next season, with renewal negotiations under way.
