Newcastle United, Arsenal and Everton fans issued ‘conditional’ warning

Newcastle United, Arsenal and Everton fans are just three of the Premier League clubs whose fans are being warned about 'conditional' fixtures by the Football Supporters Association (FSA).

The group has published a letter criticising the ongoing impact of broadcast schedules on fans, which comes as Manchester City supporters prepare to boycott the Community Shield match at Wembley Stadium for similar reasons.

The FSA has spoken out against 'conditional' picks which see a fixture selected for broadcast and having its kick-off moved from the traditional 3pm slot, which is covered by a broadcast blackout. However, the already-moved match at the moment is still at risk of being moved again because of a potential fixture clash.

The FSA explained: "This means we see games being moved twice or more (in extreme cases) and it’s a major headache for fans planning to get to games – particularly for away fans or those who travel long distances to home games.

"Last season, the problem of these conditional TV selections reared its ugly head in the very first round of TV picks.

"In August 2022, with just five days notice, Chelsea’s home game against West Ham United was moved from its new Sunday 2 pm kick-off time back to a traditional 3 pm Saturday kick-off as Chelsea were (predictably) drawn to play Champions League football the following Tuesday night.

"This farce led both sets of fans to accuse the Premier League and its broadcasters of treating supporters with 'complete contempt'."

The FSA went on to point out that a similar incident happened in October when the visit of Manchester United to Stamford Bridge only had a kick-off time confirmed two weeks in advance, despite being set for broadcast in July.

The Chelsea Supporters’ Trust slammed the organisation as 'unacceptable and deeply irresponsible'. The FSA reports that the Met Police refused to police the original kick-off time as it was too high risk and would not agree until it was moved.

As a result, the Red Devils' away allocation was slashed by 624 despite away tickets being sold and many fans paying for travel and accommodation.

The impact of that change also had a knock-on effect on Newcastle United's visit to Tottenham Hotspur, which was shunted by 24 hours to accommodate both games in the weekend’s broadcast schedule.

Now, the FSA is warning supporters that these situations could occur once again this season. In August and September, there are two fixtures reportedly at risk of disruption - Everton v Arsenal on Saturday, September 16 and Newcastle United v Brentford on Sunday, September 17 at 4:30 pm.

Both matches are at a 'high risk' of being moved due to Champions League commitments. The draw for the European competition does not take place until August 31, meaning supporters are wary of booking travel and accommodation before then.

Elsewhere, Luton Town v West Ham United is currently scheduled for 8 pm on Friday, September 1 but could be moved if the Hatters play in the League Cup the Wednesday before.

The FSA added: "We’ve raised this problem with leagues, broadcasters and the authorities repeatedly but little progress has been made. We are going to keep banging this drum with them though.

"The appetite to protect supporters from the inconvenience imposed on them by TV selections, particularly when weighed up against multi-billion pound broadcasting contracts, is low.

"But conditional selections seem like an obvious place to start – a game simply should not be allowed to move more than once for TV. If a game is at risk of being moved twice or more we don’t think it should be eligible for selection – simple as that."