Scottish Professional Football League moves to end Saturday 3pm broadcast blackout

The Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) has launched an initiative to potentially end the Saturday 3pm broadcast blackout starting in the 2029-30 season. By issuing a tender document that allows broadcasters to bid for live rights to all matches, including those scheduled for Saturday afternoons, the league is seeking to provide more flexibility for media rights holders.

The blackout is a long-standing UK-wide restriction, originally implemented in the 1960s to protect stadium attendances. It is currently maintained under Article 48 of UEFA statutes, which allows leagues to impose restrictions if 50 percent or more of professional matches are scheduled for that specific kick-off time.

This move by the SPFL is seen as a potential precursor to similar actions by other British leagues, such as the Premier League and the English Football League, which have previously expressed interest in increasing revenue by selling more live matches to broadcasters.