Why isn’t Manchester United vs Leicester on TV in the UK?

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Manchester United vs Leicester won't be shown on live TV in the UK, despite being played on Sunday

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 30: Bruno Fernandes of Manchester United (C) dribbles Boubakary Soumaré of Leicester City (R) during the Carabao Cup Fourth Round match between Manchester United and Leicester City at Old Trafford on October 30, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Will Palmer/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)
Manchester United played Leicester last week in the League Cup (Image credit: Getty Images)

Manchester United host Leicester City at Old Trafford on Sunday in the Premier League, with the game kicking off at 2pm.

Fans in the UK, however, won't be able to watch the match live on TV, despite it falling outside of the traditional 3pm Saturday blackout time. That means Manchester United fans are unable to see Ruud van Nistelrooy's final game in temporary charge of the Red Devils, while Leicester supporters don't have the opportunity to watch their side potentially climb above United in the table.

But why is that, and why isn't Manchester United vs Leicester on TV in the UK? FourFourTwo details everything you need to know below.

Why isn’t Manchester United vs Leicester on TV in the UK?

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 30: Matthijs de Ligt of Manchester United controls the ball under pressure from Bilal El Khannouss of Leicester City during the Carabao Cup Fourth Round match between Manchester United and Leicester City at Old Trafford on October 30, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images)

De Ligt on the ball when playing Leicester last week (Image credit: Getty Images)

Though Manchester United vs Leicester falls outside of the traditional 3pm Saturday blackout time, the game cannot be broadcast live on TV simply because neither Sky Sports nor TNT Sports chose the game as one of their picks for the weekend's fixtures.

Sky Sports are allowed to show three Premier League games each matchday, with the broadcaster selecting Brighton vs Manchester City on Saturday, and Nottingham Forest vs Newcastle and Chelsea vs Arsenal. TNT Sports, meanwhile, chose Liverpool vs Aston Villa, which will kick off at 8pm on Saturday.

For similar reasons, Tottenham vs Ipswich Town also isn't being broadcast live in the UK, despite being played on Sunday at 2pm.

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 30: Manchester United Head Coach Ruud van Nistelrooy celebrates a team goal during the Carabao Cup Fourth Round match between Manchester United and Leicester City at Old Trafford on October 30, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Will Palmer/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)

The game will be Van Nistelrooy's last in charge (Image credit: Getty Images)

With more than 48 hours needed between the conclusion of their Thursday Europa League match and the kick-off of their Premier League weekend game, Manchester United invariably have to play on Sunday.

That doesn't always mean games can be shown live on TV in the UK, however, with legislation in place to limit the amount of matches broadcasters can show.

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This is set to change from the 2025/26 season, with the Premier League to allow all Sunday matches to be shown on live TV,

There are still ways in which supporters can watch Premier League football from anywhere in the world.

Ryan Dabbs
Ryan Dabbs
Staff writer

Ryan is a staff writer for FourFourTwo, joining the team full-time in October 2022. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture's websites, before eventually earning himself a position with FourFourTwo permanently. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer while a Trainee News Writer at Future.