UK Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer has called on UK broadcaster, TNT Sports to make the 2025-26 UEFA Champions League Final free for fans.
Between 1992 and 2015, the Champions League Final had been free-to-air on ITV who had shared joint rights alongside Sky Sports, until BT gained the rights from the 2015-16 season and continued that free coverage of the final tradition across their own platforms.
BT’s successor, TNT however has this year decided to not make the final free outside of subscribers to both their channels and streaming service, HBO Max, which sparked fury from Starmer on 23 May at the exclusion of football fans who can’t afford to pay to tune in due to the Cost of Living crisis.
This controversy comes as Starmer’s favourite club, Arsenal prepare for a first appearance in the Champions League Final since 2006, where they will face defending champions, PSG.
Football should bring people together, not shut them out.
For the first time since the competition began, fans won’t be able to watch the Champions League final for free. That’s not right.
This is bigger than wanting to watch Arsenal in this historic final. It’s bigger than one…
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) May 23, 2026
He subsequently has now released a joint statement alongside all nine clubs who qualified for European competitions this season (Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Liverpool, Manchester City, Newcastle, Nottingham Forest and Tottenham) calling on TNT to show respect by making the final free for fans instead of prioritising their own financial pockets.
“Football is for the fans. We stand together in support of the tradition of European club competition finals being shown free-to-air and urge TNT to honour this tradition by making the Champions League Final free to watch for millions of fans, as it always has been. This is bigger than any one club or match. This is about putting fans first. There is still time to make the right call.”
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