Gavin Newlands says crunch talks with broadcasters were “encouraging” as his campaign to make Scotland men’s football internationals free-to-air steps up.
The Paisley and Renfrewshire North MP revealed earlier this week that he was looking forward to sitting down with telly chiefs to try and secure a deal that would allow everyone to watch Steve Clarke’s in-form team without needing to pay extra for subscriptions.
Newlands pointed to the fact that England fixtures are available to watch for free on Channel 4 while Welsh fans can tune into their side on S4C.
Now the MP wants Scots fans to have similar options and do away with games being behind a paywall.
Newlands thanked the broadcast representatives of BBC, STV and Viaplay for attending a meeting with him, as well as the Scottish FA, as he pointed to a possible solution being agreed to.
He said: “Firstly, I want to sincerely thank the broadcasters and stakeholders who attended today for their engagement and commitment to my round table. They had no obligation to come along but they did and they should all be applauded for that.
“Collectively, there is a commitment to making sure Scottish football fans can have the maximum level of access to their men’s national team on TV – I am pleased to have come out of today’s discussion with a number of options to pursue that works for everyone.
“As England fans can watch their games on Channel 4 and Wales on S4C, it is possible that Scotland games can be given similar treatment.
“As broadcasting is reserved, I would now want to take today’s discussions to the UK Government and encourage them to find a solution that can ensure Scotland fans can watch the national side.
“I want to see games available to everyone in Scotland as soon as possible and I will carry on pushing and working with all stakeholders to get to a point where fans in Scotland can watch their team without being hit in the pocket.”
Currently, Scotland games are being shown on Viaplay which requires a subscription to view.
A deal was secured by the Scottish Football Association (SFA) last year which gave Viaplay the rights to show games from 2024 until 2028.
The SFA said it was “pleased” with the agreement and the “guaranteed income” from UEFA’s centralised media rights sales.
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