Two huge derbies will unravel on Saturday lunchtime but the difference Sky pay for each is flabbergasting.
Manchester City’s Fernandinho in action with Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford – Manchester derby
This weekend arguably two of the biggest games in Britain will take place, however it’s not only the four teams going to battle, it’s all about the TV ratings too.
Both Celtic v Rangers and Manchester United v Manchester City will be played around the same time and being aired by the same broadcaster, a potential stumbling block for Sky.
Manchester United’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic celebrates with Wayne Rooney after scoring their first goal
But how much is Sky paying for the Old Firm compared to clash in Manchester?
According to the Daily Record the English Premier League receives an astonishing £5.136billion in TV revenue for this season. Of that, Sky paid £4.176bn for 126 matches.
If you do your calculations it works out around on average £33,142,857 per game. It means Sky is paying more than £33 million to show the Mourinho v Guardiola duel on Saturday.
If you’re comparing that to the Scottish TV deal it’s a big difference. The Daily Record says Sky contribute around £9m of the £15m-a season deal our game receives from broadcasters. Sky show 30 matches a season – which works out at just £333,000 a game.
Carlos Bocanegra – Rangers in action against Georgios Samaras – Celtic (R)
So despite both games being big draws, The Old Firm clash cost £333,000 compared to the monstrous £33 million that the Manchester Derby is worth – 100 times more.
Given the audience numbers you shouldn’t be surprised Sky are coughing up for the Premier League, 500,000 people tuned into the Scottish Cup semi-final between the two Scottish giants although nearly two million watched the Manchester derby in 2015.
Two huge games everyone will agree, but should money determine how big a derby is?
Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero
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