May 26 – Keir Starmer is, first and foremost, a happy Arsenal fan. He is also the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and he has used both hats to push for every football supporter in Britain to watch the Champions League final without reaching for their wallet.
Arsenal face Paris Saint-Germain in this weekend’s final, but for the first time in the competition’s history, the match will sit behind a paywall in the UK.
That prompted Starmer to write an open letter to TNT Sports, rebranded from BT Sport after its acquisition by Warner Bros Discovery, urging it to make the showpiece free to non-subscribers.
“I am a firm believer that the final of this competition should remain free to watch, whether Arsenal have made it or not,” Starmer wrote.
“This is about supporters of all teams coming together in living rooms and pubs in every corner of the country to watch the most elite players in Europe battle it out. Hard-working people should not have to worry about forking out for a subscription to watch a game of this magnitude.”
He went further, linking it to his earlier calls for FIFA to make World Cup tickets more affordable this summer.
For now, TNT Sports is unmoved. A spokesperson pointed to a £4.99 ($6.70) monthly HBO Max subscription covering all three UEFA club finals, calling it “exceptional value”.
Six years ago, the government rejected adding the final to the protected ‘crown jewels’ list of free-to-air events. If TNT holds firm, Starmer may yet be tempted to resurrect that fight.
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