Fans across the UK won’t be able to watch the upcoming El Clasico on TV.
The first El Clasico of the season is just around the corner, and football fans across the world eagerly await this iconic fixture. For those in the UK, however, there’s a disappointing twist.
This weekend’s match between Real Madrid and Barcelona, featuring Jude Bellingham making his El Clasico debut, won’t be available for UK viewers on television screens. The reason behind this inconvenience is the longstanding 3pm blackout rule in the UK.
The blackout rule prohibits the live broadcast of football games on TV between 2:45pm and 5:15pm on Saturdays. Originally designed to protect attendance figures at matches across the English football pyramid, the rule surprisingly extends its influence to foreign games, including La Liga.
The Spanish league confirmed that El Clasico will kick off at 3:15pm, partly due to Barcelona’s upcoming early Champions League fixture against Shakhtar Donetsk on Tuesday at 5:45pm, allowing sufficient recovery time.
Despite some debate, the UK’s 3pm blackout rule, in place since the 1960s, will remain enforced. Therefore, fans won’t be able to witness Jude Bellingham’s debut live on their screens this weekend. However, Viaplay Sports 2 will provide coverage of the game from 5:15pm once the blackout period ends.
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