https://www.therugbypaper.co.uk/latest-news/330868/championship-clubs-reject-deal-with-premier-sports/" rel="nofollow - Championship clubs reject deal with Premier Sports (therugbypaper.co.uk)

Premiersports bid to televise one match per week. It was rumoured that the match would be at an otherwise fallow time (Thursday or Friday night). The Championship clubs wanted to try to get a better deal, or offer a streaming subscription, so they blocked the Premiersports deal. Looks like they didn't get anything in place, and don't have a competition sponsor.

We had this during lockdown and it's continuing this season. Only a tenner to watch live or £2 if you watch after it's finished.

Good camera coverage and using local commentators (two current squad members who are injured at the moment for yesterday's game).

Yes, we got absolutely nothing, in place of a few hundred pounds streaming receipts per match, and an estimated £20,000 pounds loss per match for each of the three matches which would have been moved to Thursday nights.

Bloody good job too 

Screw 'em.

Interesting. I have seen nothing around this announced in general. I would normally say that any broadcast deal is good just for profile, but honestly, like 5 people habe premier sports.

Premier Sports gets about 328,000 viewers (four week reach) compared to the ~12,000 who actually attend championship matches. However, if it were to be repeated on FreeSports, the reach is 1.7m.

My guess is those numbers are for one of their popular programmes - by which I mean the round ball code.

Reports from last season, during the part of the season when supporters wete not permitted into grounds, were that even the clubs that normally get a couple of thousand supporters were only getting a few hundred viewers pet match on streaming.

That's the sort of numbers who normally pay significantly more than the streaming cost per head, not per household, to sit down for a meal at Coventry on a Saturday lunchtime, who would not do so after work on a Thursday night.

Clubs that normally get a couple of thousand supporters - you mean Bedford. <fx:ducks> I know Coventy just about squeaks into that category.

The other question is how much more valuable are your sponsorship deals if you can say, we will be on Television four times a year, with at least trailers on Freesports likely to be seen by 1million people?

Would it be easier to get a deal on a TV network with more reach, if you have got some figures from being on PremierSports?

I agree with the point around sponsorship deals, though I'm no marketing man. I'd note that the 'other' code recently had their deal slashed from £40m/annum to £24m/annum by sky. It would seem that sports rights payments are falling in many areas. Doesn't leave a lot of scraps for the Championship.

also, and it's having the occasional amateur hour moment, but the new highlights show for National 1, N2N and N2S is actually quite good (and certainly better than nothing) - so you'd have thought the Championship ought to be able to offer at least that. It's also an interesting subscription model, with a decent percentage going back to the nominated club of the subscriber. Not going to set the world on fire, but as I say, better than nothing.

2019-20 Cov ended at 2446 average, with the expected large crowd against Newcastle being one of the home matches lost to Covid. Some squeak.

And, it's not spelled Coventy.

I might have been harsh on Cov, but most Championship clubs do not get 2000 spectators. I must admit, I thought you had played Newcastle.

On the other hand, I would love to see the broadcasters turn up at Ampthill for an evening game, or indeed any game.

We were due to play Newcastle the weekend after the season was curtailed.

It was a sell-out too. Typical.