Why Leeds United are such a big draw for Sky Sports
The EFL have announced the latest round of matches that will be broadcast on Sky Sports and surprise, surprise, Leeds have been picked
once again.
United’s home game against Reading on Tuesday November 27 is the club’s latest fixture to be picked for live broadcast.
It will be league game number 10 for Marcelo Bielsa’s side to be shown on TV, making them the joint most televised side in the country alongside Liverpool.
The saving grace for match-going fans though is that because the game was already scheduled to take place on a Tuesday night, the impact on
them will be minimal.
Almost half (48%) of the Leeds league games that could have been picked for live broadcast have been this season.
Fans have seen plenty of Bielsa's side in action
Only six clubs in the whole of English football have had a larger percentage of league games televised.
More than three quarters of Liverpool games (77%) that could have been picked for TV have been.
Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham have had 69% of league games picked.
Arsenal have had 62% of games chosen while for Manchester City it’s only 54%.
It’s not hard to see why Leeds a a favourite pick for Sky.
The four United games that Sky showed in August - Stoke, Derby, Swansea and Middlesbrough - attracted a combined audience of 1.7m viewers according to figures from the Broadcasters’ Audience Research Board.
The number of Leeds games picked for live broadcast has been a hot topic at Elland Road for some time. Former madcap owner, Massimo Cellino, famously threatened not to allow Sky’s cameras into Elland Road in one dispute with the broadcaster.
Andrea Radrizzani wants a shake up when it comes to TV rights(Image: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
Leeds fans haven’t been afraid to let their feelings about Sky to be known either, often chanting “Sky TV is f****ing s**t.â€
The dispute went a step further this week when current Leeds owner, Andrea Radrizzani, called for a ‘Premier League 2’ to be created to give more television revenue to ‘big clubs’ outside of the top flight.
Leeds earned just £1.1m in broadcast revenue in 2016/17 - the latest season for which accounts are available.
Eight of United’s league games were shown live that season, which works out at £137,500 per game.
By comparison, that same season saw Chelsea - the Premier League’s top earners that year - pick up £5,386,114 per game.
Most televised teams - league games only
Team Televised Not televised
Liverpool 10 3
Leeds United 10 11
Tottenham Hotspur 9 4
Manchester United 9 4
Chelsea 9 4
Aston Villa 9 12
West Bromwich Albion 8 13
Middlesbrough 8 13
Arsenal 8 5
Manchester City 7 6
West Ham United 6 7
Newcastle United 6 7
Everton 6 7
Crystal Palace 6 7
Brighton and Hove Albion 6 7
Wolverhampton Wanderers 5 8
Swansea City 5 16
Stoke City 5 16
Sheffield United 5 16
Derby County 5 16
Most televised teams - by percentage of games
Team Percent picked for TV
Liverpool 77%
Tottenham Hotspur 69%
Manchester United 69%
Chelsea 69%
Arsenal 62%
Manchester City 54%
Leeds United 48%
West Ham United 46%
Newcastle United 46%
Everton 46%
Crystal Palace 46%
Brighton and Hove Albion 46%
Aston Villa 43%
Wolverhampton Wanderers 38%
West Bromwich Albion 38%
Middlesbrough 38%
Watford 31%
Leicester City 31%
Huddersfield Town 31%
Fulham 31%
Cardiff City 31%
Championship Audiences on Sky Sports
Date Match Audience
03/08/2018 Reading vs Derby County 413,000
04/08/2018 Sheffield United vs Swansea City 306,000
05/08/2018 Leeds United vs Stoke City 394,000
06/08/2018 Hull City vs Aston Villa 334,000
07/08/2018 Nottingham Forest vs West Bromwich Albion 310,000
11/08/2018 Derby County vs Leeds United 400,000
17/08/2018 Birmingham City vs Swansea City 272,000
18/08/2018 Preston North End vs Stoke City 95,000
21/08/2018 Swansea City vs Leeds United 429,000
22/08/2018 Aston Villa vs Brentford 345,000
24/08/2018 Middlesbrough vs West Bromwich Albion 405,000
25/08/2018 Nottingham Forest vs Birmingham City 289,000
31/08/2018 Leeds United vs Middlesbrough 448,000
01/09/2018 Millwall vs Swansea City 145,000
14/09/2018 Birmingham City vs West Bromwich Albion 310,000
15/09/2018 Blackburn Rovers vs Aston Villa 156,000
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