EFL clubs vote through lucrative new TV deal worth £935million to end 3pm blackout uncertainty

EFL clubs have voted through a new TV rights deal with Sky Sports that is worth £935million.

The new agreement will see Sky continue their coverage of the EFL over a five-year period with significant improvements for both clubs and viewers.

Clubs were made aware of Sky's offer on Friday morning and unanimously agreed to the improved proposal.

As part of the new deal, 1000 matches will be either broadcast or streamed in each of the five seasons from 2024/25 to 2028/29.

This is a huge improvement on the 138 EFL matches that are currently broadcast each year.

The deal also represents a 50 per cent increase in value on the deal which Sky have held since 2018, an agreement which caused huge concern for clubs in the EFL who believed that their product was being undervalued.

It had been suggested that broadcasters DAZN wanted to purchase the rights and broadcast every game live, bringing an end to the traditional 3pm blackout that is currently in place.

But while that could be something that is considered in the future, the 3pm blackout will be kept in place as part of the new deal.

Among the 1000 games per season that will be broadcast, all opening, final day, and midweek fixtures in the EFL will be shown live along with games played on Bank Holidays including Easter, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

All fixtures in League One and League Two scheduled during the international breaks will also be televised.