Barcelona will be hosting Real Madrid on Saturday afternoon, which will see Jude Bellingham make his debut in arguably the largest fixture in the world as arguably the headline act. However fans from his home country of England will not be able to watch their biggest star on the biggest stage.
The blackout rule in the UK means that no games can be broadcast between 2:45pm and 5:25pm, in order to protect local teams and attendances, with most games scheduled for 3pm on a Saturday. It means that with El Clasico scheduled for 3:15pm in the UK (4:15pm CEST), English fans will not be able to tune in for the match, in contrast to the rest of the world.
La Liga have expressed their own disappointment, with Managing Director for LaLiga UK and Ireland Keegan Pierce releasing a statement on the matter.
“We’re disappointed that British fans cannot watch El Clasico this weekend, due to the UK’s self-imposed Saturday 3pm blackout rule. While we fully support measures to promote attendance up and down the pyramid, we believe the blackout should be limited to televising of domestic football, not overseas competitions, who have no voice nor vote in the matter. This is a topic we look forward to discussing with football stakeholders in the UK during the coming months.”
Bellingham has been directly responsible for 58% of Real Madrid’s goals this season, and with Robert Lewandowski likely missing the match through injury, he is the undisputed largest goal threat. All eyes elsewhere will be on him at the weekend.
