The first Premier League TV picks for the 2023/24 season have been made and it will take some doing to avoid watching new Sky Sports favourites Newcastle.
Sky Sports and TNT Sports have chosen their TV games for the first seven weeks of the new Premier League campaign. One team has all but one match shown. Another has only one match selected.
Newcastle – six games
Sky Sports – Aston Villa (h), Liverpool (h), Brighton (a), Brentford (h), Sheffield United (a)
TNT Sports – Manchester City (a)
Those TV execs have a new favourite plaything. The only Newcastle game of their first seven in the Premier League not to be broadcast this season is the home match against Burnley on September 30.
Arsenal – five games
Sky Sports – Crystal Palace (a), Man Utd (h), Everton (a), Spurs (h)
TNT Sports – Nottingham Forest (h)
The first test of whether TNT Sports can avoid the pitfalls of its predecessor comes on the first Saturday of the season when Arsenal host Nottingham Forest, but the Gunners are otherwise stationed fairly frequently on a revamped Sky.
Chelsea – five games
Sky Sports – Liverpool (h), West Ham (a), Luton (h), Bournemouth (a), Fulham (a)
Perhaps hoping Frank Lampard is in caretaker charge before long, Chelsea will face two of the sides who finished last season above them, a couple more who ended up below, and Luton in their Premier League away bow.
Spurs – five games
Sky Sports – Man Utd (h), Arsenal (a), Liverpool (h), Brentford (a)
TNT Sports – Bournemouth (a)
That is an awful lot of airtime to fill trying to make Spurs sell Harry Kane.
Brentford – four games
Sky Sports – Spurs (h), Newcastle (a), Everton (h), Nottingham Forest (a)
If third season syndrome is a thing then much of it will be captured by the cameras early doors.
Everton – four games
Sky Sports – Aston Villa (a), Arsenal (h), Brentford (a)
TNT Sports – Sheffield United (a)
Impressive forward-thinking to save all the Goodison boos for later in the season when it properly starts to matter.
Everton fans invade Goodison Park
Liverpool – four games
Sky Sports – Chelsea (a), Newcastle (a), Spurs (a)
TNT Sports – Wolves (a)
All four of Liverpool’s televised games so far being away is the kind of thing Jurgen Klopp will forget about and not take out on Des Kelly.
Man Utd – four games
Sky Sports – Wolves (h), Spurs (a), Arsenal (a)
TNT Sports – Burnley (a)
The first months of the Premier League season are not an early-round FA Cup tie so Man Utd are not a) perennially at home or b) permanently on the box.
Brighton – three games
Sky Sports – West Ham (h), Newcastle (h)
TNT Sports – Aston Villa (a)
There is a particularly European flavour when it comes to Brighton’s selection.
Aston Villa – three games
Sky Sports – Newcastle (a), Everton (h)
TNT Sports – Brighton (h)
Villa won five of their six games against those three opponents last season; the exception to that rule was a 4-0 defeat to Newcastle they’d really rather wasn’t shown live.
Manchester City – three games
Sky Sports – Burnley (a), Sheffield United (a)
TNT Sports – Newcastle (h)
The champions have not been picked for broadcast throughout the whole of September after having their first three games – including a season opener against Vincent Kompany which is dripping in narrative – chosen for TV.
Sheffield United – three games
Sky Sports – Manchester City (h), Newcastle (h)
TNT Sports – Everton (h)
There is no appetite to have the Blades seen on their travels but no club has more home games on the tube early on.
West Ham – three games
Sky Sports – Chelsea (h), Brighton (a), Luton (a)
A perfect schedule to parade a European trophy in front of Chelsea, compare notes on extracting nine-figure fees for midfielders with Brighton and test out that Luton away entrance.
Wolves – three games
Sky Sports – Man Utd (a), Crystal Palace (a)
TNT Sports – Liverpool (h)
Nice 150-mile round trip to Old Trafford for the first MNF of the campaign for Wolves. The fans who sensibly opt to stay at home will doubtless be treated to five minutes of analysis on their summer transfer window and season hopes.
Bournemouth – two games
Sky Sports – Chelsea (h)
TNT Sports – Spurs (h)
Gary O’Neil will be watching with the keenest eye of any observer as Andoni Iraola endures one of the more difficult Premier League introductions.
Burnley – two games
Sky Sports – Manchester City (h)
TNT Sports – Man Utd (a)
The Clarets are keeping their TV offerings fairly local at this stage.
Crystal Palace – two games
Sky Sports – Arsenal (h), Wolves (h)
Roy Hodgson won’t welcome an 8pm Monday kick-off against the Gunners, but at least Songs of Praise will be finished by the time they face Wolves at 2pm a couple of Sundays after.
Luton – two games
Sky Sports – Chelsea (a), West Ham (h)
The coverage of that West Ham game, the first top-flight league match at Kenilworth Road since April 1992, is going to be unbearably condescending.
READ MORE: Luton, Ogbene cynics miss the point as dreaming Hatters won’t be corrupted by Prem money-bags
Nottingham Forest – two games
Sky Sports – Brentford (h)
TNT Sports – Arsenal (a)
There are 51 days between Forest’s first TV game – at Saturday lunchtime of the opening weekend – and their second against Brentford in October.
Fulham – one game
Sky Sports – Chelsea (h)
Those bloody poor Fulham fans will have to wait until Monday, October 2 – seven weeks into the season – for a chance to see their side on the box. And even then it’s against a team a stone’s throw away.
Feel really sorry for Fulham fans today…
Some can’t afford Season tickets or match tickets due to increases in price
Some can’t afford the new £80 shirts
Can’t watch your team on TV until week 7 of the season
How are you supposed to get enjoyment in supporting your club?
— Graham Rodber (@grahamrodber) July 8, 2023
Full Premier League television schedule for the 2023/24 season
Friday August 11
Burnley v Manchester City (8pm, Sky Sports)
Saturday August 12
Arsenal v Forest (12.30pm, TNT Sports)
Newcastle v Aston Villa (5.30pm, Sky Sports)
Sunday August 13
Brentford v Spurs (2pm, Sky Sports)
Chelsea v Liverpool (4.30pm, Sky Sports)
Monday August 14
Man Utd v Wolves (8pm, Sky Sports)
Saturday August 19
Spurs v Man Utd (5.30pm, Sky Sports)
Manchester City v Newcastle (8pm, TNT Sports)
Sunday August 20
Aston Villa v Everton (2pm, Sky Sports)
West Ham v Chelsea (4.30pm, Sky Sports)
Monday August 21
Crystal Palace v Arsenal (8pm, Sky Sports)
Friday August 25
Chelsea v Luton Town (8pm, Sky Sports)
Saturday August 26
AFC Bournemouth v Spurs (12.30pm, TNT Sports)
Brighton v West Ham (5.30pm, Sky Sports)
Sunday 27 August
Sheff Utd v Man City (2pm, Sky Sports)
Newcastle v Liverpool (4.30pm, Sky Sports)
Friday 1 September
Luton Town v West Ham (8pm, Sky Sports)
Saturday 2 September
Sheff Utd v Everton (12.30pm, TNT Sports)
Brighton v Newcastle (5.30pm, Sky Sports)
Sunday 3 September
Crystal Palace v Wolves (2pm, Sky Sports)
Arsenal v Man Utd (4.30pm, Sky Sports)
Saturday 16 September
Wolves v Liverpool (12.30pm, TNT Sports)
Everton v Arsenal (5.30pm, Sky Sports)
Sunday 17 September
AFC Bournemouth v Chelsea (2pm, Sky Sports)
Newcastle v Brentford (4.30pm, Sky Sports)
Saturday 23 September
Brentford v Everton (5.30pm, Sky Sports)
Burnley v Man Utd (8pm, TNT Sports)
Sunday 24 September
Arsenal v Spurs (2pm, Sky Sports)
Sheff Utd v Newcastle (4.30pm, Sky Sports)
Saturday 30 September
Aston Villa v Brighton (12.30pm, TNT Sports)
Spurs v Liverpool (5.30pm, Sky Sports)
Sunday 1 October
Nott’m Forest v Brentford (2pm, Sky Sports)
Monday 2 October
Fulham v Chelsea (8pm, Sky Sports)
Tuesday 5 December (all Amazon Prime at 7.45pm unless stated otherwise)
Aston Villa v Manchester City
Brighton v Brentford
Everton v Newcastle
Fulham v Nottingham Forest
Luton v Arsenal
Sheffield United v Liverpool
Tottenham v West Ham
Wolves v Burnley
Crystal Palace v Bournemouth (8pm)
Wednesday 6 December
Man Utd v Chelsea (8pm, Amazon Prime)
Tuesday 26 December (all Amazon Prime at 3pm)
Bournemouth v Fulham
Arsenal v West Ham
Brentford v Wolves
Brighton v Tottenham
Burnley v Liverpool
Chelsea v Crystal Palace
Everton v Manchester City
Man Utd v Aston Villa
Newcastle v Nottingham Forest
Sheffield United v Luton
