David Farnor | On 27, Nov 2019

Amazon is wheeling out its big tech guns this December as it prepares to take on Sky and BT in broadcasting the Premier League in the UK.

The online giant snapped up the rights to 20 matches last summer, after Sky and BT bagged several packages of fixtures for their own sports offerings. Amazon stormed the pitch when several bundles were still left unsold, acquiring the rights to show live football matches per season in the UK and Ireland, from the 2019/2020 season to 2021/22. The result marks the first time ever in the UK that football fans can watch all of early December midweek games and all of the Boxing Day games on TV.

Amazon is sparing no expense in trying to get its football coverage right first time. The tech firm will have more than 350 cameras in Premier League stadiums up and down the country and more than 2,000 camera operators, editors, sound engineers, directors, mixers and producers, as well as more than 70 on-screen talent to analyse, commentate and host more than 35 hours of football.

“We are treating every game as a big game,” says Alex Green, Managing Director, Prime Video Sport, Europe. “As a streaming service, we have the added benefit of being able to stay on air until we have heard from everyone and analysed everything. In addition, when there are multiple matches happening in a day, we are providing a show called Goals Centre which, will not only give the latest scores from up and down the country but will also be able to show every goal from every Premier League game, as it happens.”

On web, mobile, and Fire TV, customers can also search for deeper insights using Prime Video’s X-Ray function. With X-Ray, fans will be able track advanced live match stats (via Opta), catch-up on key highlights and moments from the match, and view player lineups from each club at the click of a button. The stats will update in real-time throughout the game and indicate how each team is performing, including possession, passing accuracy, number of clearances per team, and total number of cards. X-Ray stats will also show head to head data including team positions, average goals scored/conceded, as well as a team’s number of clean sheets for the season. Key club information such as stadium details and mascot names will be displayed as well, plus fans can dive deeper into any of the players from each club to learn more about them.

The highlights feature will help fans catch-up on key highlights and moments (such as goals) from the match. These also update in real-time throughout the game and, for select matches and highlights, fans will be able to re-watch key moments with the click
of a button, after which they will be returned to the match – the stats, on the other hand, will not interrupt the viewing of the match, with the footballing remaining on in the background.

Fans can stream up to three matches on different devices at the same time using the same Amazon account, allowing the possibility for multiple games to be streamed under one roof, alongside the dedicated stream for Goals Centre.

And, to ensure the visuals are up to scratch, Amazon Prime subscribers will also be able to watch some of the biggest games on Prime Video in 4K Ultra HD at no extra cost.

Amazon’s Premier League streaming will kick off from 3rd December, with a midweek round of matches that includes the first Merseyside Derby of the season, as Everton travel to Anfield to take on European Champions Liverpool, as well as UEFA Champions League finalists Spurs visiting Old Trafford to take on Man Utd. Its second round of matches will be on Boxing Day, including Man City travelling to Wolves and Liverpool travelling to Leicester, plus Man Utd hosting Newcastle.

The matches are included as part of an Amazon Prime membership, which costs £7.99 a month, with no contract, or £79.99 for the whole year. A 30-day free trial is also available. You can see the full list of fixtures here.

 
For more information on how to watch the Premier League on Amazon Prime Video, click here

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