Friday Night Football – yay or nay? Ladbrokes News have their say

It was set to reinvent the way we watched the Premier League but in truth, Friday Night Football has hardly been a huge success in its debut season on Sky Sports.

But will producers turn their back on the project? Or could it be improved? Here’s what the Ladbrokes News team had to say…

William Geldart

Friday Night Football doesn’t seem to have caught the imagination of the viewing public although you could argue it hasn’t been given much of a chance to bed in.

When Sky Sports starting screening Super Sunday and Monday Night Football there were plenty of opponents but both became successful in their own right and are now a mainstay in the fixture lists.

For me personally, I think a regular dose of FNF will act as the perfect introduction to the Premier League weekend. MNF has become stale with few high-profile classics in recent memory and the programme has become more about the analysis of the weekend just gone.

Stick with FNF and keep an hour-long analysis show with GNev and Jamie Carragher. And you could even follow that with a live Championship fixture to keep a dose of live football and give the second-tier some Monday exposure.

I should also stress I’m only putting this view forward with my ‘television executive’ hat on. Fans would probably welcome more 15:00 kick-offs on a Saturday!

Richard Marsh

Can I sit on the fence with this one? I say it’s hard to judge, mainly because Sky haven’t used anywhere near the 10 slots they paid for, and they can’t argue it was because of English teams in Europe.

It certainly hasn’t been the success Sky thought it would be, but then television figures across all football slots are beginning to struggle.

I’m fully of the belief that there is a place for Friday Night Football, and certainly for the younger generation, a Friday night game is more appealing than a Monday game.

And perhaps that’s where Sky’s problem lies. The younger generation are less likely to have a Sky subscription. For me though, I’m hoping they give Friday football the full works next year – then I’ll jump off the fence.

Alex Apati

For me, it’s the quality of fixtures which has let this project down.

Back in August, the stage was set for FNF to make a huge statement by scheduling one of the league’s biggest matches into the pre-weekend slot. What did they opt for? Man United v Southampton.

It’s hard to attract the neutral to that kind of game – and that was their big chance to go all out. If they can improve the quality of games, then figures would undoubtedly increase.

I could sit and watch GNev and Carra talk football any day of the week, so it could be a case of the show choosing the wrong kind of guests and pundits.

Personally I can’t see FNF going anywhere soon. Granted, it hasn’t worked this year, but I don’t think Sky should wash their hands with it completely.

In an ideal world, this is just the start, as I’d like to see a Prem game live on TV every night of the week. Wishful thinking, perhaps, but we can only dream!

We’ve had our say, but what do you think? Leave your comments below!

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