While the team gained another point in what is still on track to be a record-breaking season on the pitch, Liverpool FC have broken a record on screen with the admittedly disappointing return to action against local rivals Everton drawing the highest audience in Premier League history.
In what will delight Reds fans even further, the Merseyside derby on 22 June drew an audience of 5.5 million viewers at peak, 5 million on average, outscoring the previous record for viewing for the Manchester City versus Manchester United clash in April 2012 which drew four million viewers.
The big restart of Premier League football following the outbreak of Covid-19 took place on 17 June with Aston Villa v Sheffield United and then Manchester City v Arsenal. These two fixtures were followed by a full match round beginning on Friday 19 June. All 92 of the held-over games are being shown live on television in the UK. Sky Sports will show 64 games; BT Sport, 20; the BBC will offer four games free-to-air; and after a successful debut in December, Amazon Prime will take another four.
The original schedule was badly affected by the pandemic and was halted in March just before the lockdown with most teams having nine more games of the season to play. In February 2018, Sky and BT retained principal Premier League football rights in a three-season dea.
Viewing for the Merseyside derby at Goodison Park was boosted by the fact that it was shown on Sky’s free-to-air channel Sky Pick as well as its pay channels and sport platform. The game concluded the first full weekend round of fixtures since the premier League was halted in March 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Sky’s record also came 24 hours after the BBC showed its first live top-flight English league game since 1988 with the clash between relegation-threatened Bournemouth and Crystal Palace. The south London team’s 2-0 win was watched by 3.9 million viewers on the free BBC platforms.
The big restart of Premier League football following the outbreak of Covid-19 took place on 17 June with Aston Villa v Sheffield United and then Manchester City v Arsenal. These two fixtures were followed by a full match round beginning on Friday 19 June. All 92 of the held-over games are being shown live on television in the UK. Sky Sports will show 64 games; BT Sport, 20; the BBC will offer four games free-to-air; and after a successful debut in December, Amazon Prime will take another four.
The original schedule was badly affected by the pandemic and was halted in March just before the lockdown with most teams having nine more games of the season to play. In February 2018, Sky and BT retained principal Premier League football rights in a three-season dea.
Viewing for the Merseyside derby at Goodison Park was boosted by the fact that it was shown on Sky’s free-to-air channel Sky Pick as well as its pay channels and sport platform. The game concluded the first full weekend round of fixtures since the premier League was halted in March 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Sky’s record also came 24 hours after the BBC showed its first live top-flight English league game since 1988 with the clash between relegation-threatened Bournemouth and Crystal Palace. The south London team’s 2-0 win was watched by 3.9 million viewers on the free BBC platforms.
