SPFL invites TV bids that could open Saturday 3pm games to live coverage from 2029

The Scottish Professional Football League has invited broadcasters to consider televising every Scottish Premiership match from 2029, including fixtures in the protected Saturday afternoon window, according to the Guardian. Its report says a rights tender issued last week offers an option based on the blackout no longer applying, rather than confirming that the restriction will end.

The invitation was first reported by Sports Business. According to the Guardian's account, bidders can make offers on the assumption that the blocked hours allowed under UEFA's Article 48 will not be in force during the next rights cycle. That would bring Saturday 3pm matches within the scope of live coverage if the relevant football associations stop applying the restriction.

The current blackout prevents UK broadcasters from screening live football between 2.45pm and 5.15pm on Saturdays when at least half the matches in the top two divisions fall within that period. The Guardian notes that the conditions allow exceptions on FA Cup weekends and during weekend bank holidays over Christmas. The UK remains the only European country using Article 48 to impose such a restriction.

Responsibility for applying the rule rests with the English, Scottish, Welsh and Irish football associations, which the report says will take their lead from clubs. A source familiar with the tender told the Guardian that continued use of blocked hours after 2029 appeared increasingly unlikely. That assessment is not a formal decision, and the tender's flexibility leaves the eventual broadcasting arrangements dependent on what the associations decide.

The Scottish move follows interest in ending the blackout from the Premier League and English Football League. The Guardian reported last year that both saw the sale of additional televised fixtures as a route to higher revenue. Current UK broadcast allowances extend to 270 Premier League matches, 1,059 EFL fixtures and 82 Scottish Premiership games, according to the newspaper.

Premier League chief executive Richard Masters acknowledged in August that the restriction was under discussion. Speaking to Talksport, he said a decision would be needed before the next domestic rights processes for the Premier League and EFL, suggesting the question would be revisited in about 18 months. For now, the SPFL tender provides a bidding option for wider coverage, not an agreed end to the blackout.