Development of OTT platform agreed after criticism from influential owner of Wrexham
Following public criticism from Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds, who owns Welsh club Wrexham along with fellow big name star Rob McElhenney, the Vanarama National League has agreed to start work on creating its very own live streaming platform.
The Deadpool and Free Guy star described the league's decision not to let clubs stream their matches "truly baffling" in a social media post. Reynolds also called on the league's sponsor Vanarama to play a role in facilitating talks with domestic rights holder BT Sport, which they then promised to do.
The change which Reynolds and McElhenney were seeking now seems to be on the horizon, as the National League announce that they are currently working with BT Sport to reach an agreement, whereby matches which aren't scheduled to appear on the traditional TV network can be made available via live streaming by clubs directly to their consumers.
From the second half of this season, the NL hopes to allow all of its clubs the opportunity to make their matches available via live streaming. This move would theoretically enable the clubs in England's fifth tier to generate more revenue and become more sustainable.
However, not everyone is on board with the move. Some fans and owenrs of other National League clubs have expressed concerns to Reynolds on Twitter about what this rule change would mean for them.
The rule in question is Article 48 of the UEFA Statute, otherwise known as the "3pm Blackout" which bars broadcasters from providing coverage of matches taking place at 3pm on a Saturday afternoon.
The reasoning behind the rule, in its inception, was to reduce the risk of club's battling decreasing attendances due to fans being tempted to stay at home and watch football on TV. Football clubs, especially those lower in the pyramid, rely heavily on matchday revenue from things like tickets sold, merchandise and refreshments.
Theoretically, if every match were made available at 3pm on a Saturday, fans wouldn't go to watch their local teams in person, thus starving those institutions of essential revenue.
However, many fans and experts believe this rule to be outdated and not compatible with the modern state of the sport.
After complaints from Reynolds, his co-owner and fans more generally, the National League has decided to go ahead with the introduction of a streaming platform and outlined a plan of action to reach this goal during the 2022/23 season.
The National League said, in a statement:
"We have been working closely with [BT Sport] over the past few months to secure an agreement whereby non-televised matches could be streamed on a league platform, also respecting the need to comply with Article 48 [The 3pm Blackout] restrictions."
"BT Sport have been incredibly supportive in this vision, for which we are extremely grateful. Following board approval, we will now be progressing matters to contractually cement that position."
"After several months of considering the options and appropriate due diligence, the board were presented with a detailed report which, having received proposals from a number of potential partners including market leaders and which also included speaking with organisations who have successful experience in streaming, a series of recommendations were made."
"The board unanimously approved all recommendations and have tasked the commercial committee to immediately progress this work, finalise contractual arrangements and confirm timelines. The ambition is to have a fully functioning platform launch in the second half of the season."
This move would see the National League move in line with the EFL (English Football League) which already has its own dedicated live streaming platform, iFollow. The EFL itself is regularly dealing with complaints from fans who cannot use the platform to watch their teams' matches unless they are based outside the UK, again due to Article 48.
As live streaming becomes more and more ingrained in football culture in the UK, expect to see the EFL campaign to open the floodgates on their platform too, and perhaps even the Premier League eventually.
However, it is important to remember that this new National League OTT platform will only allow clubs to air matches which are not set to be broadcast on BT Sport, with the linear pay-TV provider still taking precedence and given the ability to pick and choose which fixtures it wants to prioritise and air on its network.
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