Coventry City games could be on free-to-air TV next season as the fixture list is turned on its head

Coventry City matches could be shown on free-to-air TV as soon as next season after a deal between the EFL, Sky Sports and ITV was announced.

A new offer starts in January 2025 and runs until the end of 2026/27. ITV will simulcast five Championship games in the second half of the 2024/25 season and then 10 games in each of the next two campaigns, as well as the Carabao Cup semi-finals and final next year, then ties from each round in the next two. seasons. ITV is also expanding its EFL record pack. There will be 55 current affairs programs across each season, broadcast on ITV1, ITV4 and on demand on ITVX.

It comes at a transformative time for televised football outside of England’s Premier League – and the knock-on effect it will have on the fixture log as so many games will shift from the traditional Saturday afternoon slot. There will be more than 1,000 matches broadcast live each season in the Championship, League One and League Two – including at least 24 Coventry League matches each season – as part of a £935m deal with Sky.

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All opening weekend, final day, midweek and bank holiday games – including Easter, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day – will be on TV. Opening day matches can still kick off at 3pm on Saturday 10 August as the no-go rule – which does not allow live football on TV between 2.45pm and 5.15pm on Saturdays to protect match attendance – only applies when 50% of Premier. League and championship matches are scheduled. The Premier League doesn’t start until a week later.

All 15 play-off matches, all 93 Carabao Cup matches and all 127 EFL Trophy matches will also be shown live on Sky. All games will have commentary and viewers will be able to pause and rewind, which was not an option using the previous red button feature.

Six games are expected to be played in the EFL starting at 12.30pm on Saturday and there will be one or two on both Friday evening and Sunday lunchtime.

The program list is to be announced on Wednesday, June 29 at 9:00 AM. Sky says television selections, dates and times for games from August to September will be confirmed in early July, and all selections up to January will be confirmed before the start of the season.

EFL chief executive Trevor Birch said: “We want EFL to be accessible to as many audiences as possible and this additional offering, with no additional subscription required, only enhances our reputation.”

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