The thing about football, one senior media executive observed recently, “is that it’s 99 per cent hype and 1 per cent action”. There’s no mistaking the appeal of that hype, though. BT and Sky are paying a combined £1.7 billion per season for live domestic rights for the Premier League until 2019, betting that the fireworks and furore surrounding matches from St James’ Park to Selhurst Park will bring in subscribers and advertisers. The problem, however, is that they are not alone.

Instead of enjoying a clear path to their goal of happy punters and booming profits, the two broadcasters have challengers encroaching on the pitch. On one side are the pirates: a recent BBC survey found that more than a third of Premier League