What Sheffield United fans said about pay-per-view charges to watch Blades play Liverpool and Fulham - as 90 per cent of supporters say they won't pay one-off payment

The Premier League announced on Friday that games not originally selected for live coverage would be available via Sky Sports and BT Sport’s box office services.

Top-flight clubs voted 19-1 in favour of the pay-per-view scheme on Friday - with Leicester City the only one to vote against it.

It means fans who want to watch United against Fulham at Bramall Lane on Sunday and their trip to Anfield to take on Liverpool on Saturday October 24 will have to fork out £14.95 for each match.

The move has sparked concern from fans’ groups and key figures in the game – while it has also been suggested that it would drive fans to watch matches on illegal streams.

On Twitter and Facebook, we asked Unitedites whether they would fork out £14.95 to watch United on pay-per-view via Sky Sports or BT Sport.

And in a Twitter poll of United fans over the weekend – which 1,163 supporters responded to – 90 per cent said they would not pay a one-off charge to watch Chris Wilder’s men in action.

So, what did United fans say on social media?

Lisa Weatherstone on Facebook wrote: “Already subscribe to Sky Sports,BT Sport and Amazon Prime. Not paying anymore, it’s ridiculous. We are in a pandemic and most families are struggling to put food on the table and pay bills. I think it’s shocking that Premier League are doing this.”

Dave Johnson posted: “Not if you already subscribe to one of their sports packages!”

Kieran Whitehouse said: “I imagine the ‘big six’ fans will rarely, if ever, have to fork out for any of these PPVs going on how often they’re on.”

And John Lumley agrees, saying: “No. I pay far too much for Sky TV as it is.”

Ryan Godbehere on Twitter: “£15 per game, absolute shambles. £5 a game fair enough, not £15!”

But David Spencer wrote: “It's for matches that we would have normally had to pay much more to attend.”

And Mark Watchorn said he would be paying: “As far as I’m concerned I’m buying a ticket to see a game I would otherwise miss.”

What have other fans said?

The Football Supporters' Association is unhappy and has released this statement, which reads: “Many Premier League clubs have already taken money from fans, particularly season ticket holders, for matches they can't attend so we urge them to get refunds out to those supporters as soon as possible.

“We've also already heard from many supporters and FSA members who are concerned about the £15 per game being charged and we'd urge BT Sport and Sky Sports to reconsider their pricing for these games.”

‘Really bad move’

Former Manchester United defender-turned Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville led calls for a rethink, tweeting: “This is is really bad move by the Premier League to charge £14.95 for single matches that have been shown free for six months.”

Will there be a U-turn?

It’s not certain whether this will be the case but Premier League shareholders are due to meet later this week and the fan fury sparked by their original decision could force a rethink.

So, watch this space . . .