HOWZAT

Yet, as entertaining as the audio commentaries are, it’s live video streams of matches that the fans really crave. “The best thing the clubs could do would be to show live matches,” Breslow says. “Our subscriptions would be multiplied 10, 20 or 30-fold if we could do that,” says Premium TV’s chief executive, Oliver Slipper.

So why don’t the clubs give their loyal supporters what they want? “If every single game was available over the internet, club ticket sales would drop,” Slipper says.

However, there are signs that the tide is beginning to turn. From next season, every Champions League game broadcast by ITV and Sky will also have to be streamed live from their websites — although the precise technicalities of how they will do this have yet to be ironed out. While no rights have yet been agreed to show this summer’s World Cup matches live on the internet, there will be “near live” highlights delivered to 3G mobile phones. Add in the Premier League’s decision to include internet-broadcasting rights from the 2007-08 season, and it seems football may have learnt from the mistakes of the music industry, and decided to embrace new technology rather than show it the red card.

Ways to watch your team without breaking the law

MOBILE PHONES

Vodafone and 3 Mobile both offer “live television” to 3G subscribers. There are no live matches, but you can stream Soccer Saturday on Sky Sports News. Does it work at results time on Saturday? Doors had no problem connecting all afternoon, but even with the “generous” screen on a Nokia N70, the picture was too cramped to see the results tickers. So, for £5 per month, you’re essentially paying to listen to the boys in the studio. Better than checking the scores for free at the up-to-the-minute BBC Wap site (wap.bbc.co.uk)? Not really. Vodafone Live! and 3 Mobile also offer video clips of match highlights a few minutes after the final whistle. As with Chelsea, these are watchable, if not exactly enjoyable, and motion blur prevents you spotting a crafty Drogba handball or dive.

INTERNET STREAMING

The legit video highlights and interviews on club websites offer the only chance fans of less well-known teams will have to see their team in action. Picture quality is still more Conference than Premiership. Doors tested Newcastle United’s service, from Premium TV, which provides online video for half the Premiership teams and all but two Football League clubs. Even at top-quality 300kbps, blocky images made it hard to tell Shearer and Solano apart on the postcard-sized screen. Like the Magpies: passable, but in dire need of improvement. Picture quality is a touch better at www.uefa.com, which provides full match replays and highlights of every Champions League match. Uefa has, unfortunately, partnered with Real, which bombards you with marketing guff, despite a £3.95 monthly subscription.

INTERNET DOWNLOADS

By far the best legit service in terms of video quality is the new SkybyBroadband. Available only to Sky Sports subscribers with broadband, it provides downloadable highlights of all Sky coverage, including Premiership and Champions League matches. On a computer screen, the pictures have only a hint of motion blur. Match highlights take about five minutes to download on a 512kbps connection. (News International, which owns The Sunday Times, has a 35.3% stake in Sky.) Also impressive is the BBC’s interactive media player (iMP), which recently underwent a trial. This didn’t offer sports coverage, due to rights issues, but may permit downloads of Match of the Day, when — and if — it launches later this year.

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