The 3pm Football Blackout Rule Explained
Why Saturday 3:00pm football matches are not broadcast live on television in the United Kingdom.
What is the 3pm Blackout Rule?
In the United Kingdom, no football matches taking place between 2:45pm and 5:15pm on Saturday afternoons can be broadcast live on television or streamed online. This applies to both domestic fixtures (Premier League, Championship, League One, League Two) and foreign matches (La Liga, Serie A, etc.).
The History & Purpose of the Blackout
Introduced in the 1960s by Burnley chairman Bob Lord and codified under UEFA Article 48, the rule is intended to protect stadium attendances at lower-league and grassroots matches. The premise is that if Premier League matches were readily available on TV at 3pm on Saturdays, attendances across the English Football League and non-league pyramid would suffer.