Top TV packages for this football season

Published:

05 August 2010

Topic:

News,Broadband

Football fans mourning the end of the World Cup have less than two weeks to wait until the Premiership season kicks off.

More competitive playing field

The good news is that there is much more choice and competition in the market now that Sky has opened up access to its sports channels to rivals such as BT and Virgin Media.

BT's Vision deal, for example, is offering Sky Sports 1 and 2 plus ESPN (a separate pay-per-view channel) at a competitive £11.99 a month if you take both channels together. Alternatively, you can add just one of these channels for £6.99 per month.

In order to take advantage of the BT Vision package you will need to take out a 'bundled' deal which also includes BT's broadband and home phone options. The average cost is £17.99 a month plus £11.54 line rental. If your phone and broadband is already being serviced by BT, you can simply 'add-on' the Vision package.

"BT Vision is a competitive deal and shows there is more choice available for consumers and their footballing needs," said moneysupermarket.com's broadband and mobile manager Mike Wilson.
 
"However, although all the Premiership matches will be covered on Sky Sports 1 and 2, viewers will not have access to Sky Sports 3, 4 and 5 which show other English and Scottish league games for those fans that follow teams that aren't in the English Premiership. Also Champions League matches are often split between both Sky Sports 2 and Sky Sports 4."

Premium TV sports packages

Die-hard football fans who want viewing access to every match should expect to part with a fair chunk of cash for their TV package - but they should still shop around for the cheapest deal within the arena.

As providers are jostling for as much of your business as possible, this will is likely to involve signing up to broadband and home phone packages bundle with the same provider.

Top of the tables is Virgin Media's Bundle deal which offers all the main sports channels, plus 165 other digital channels, for a monthly fee of £45.51 plus £11.99 line rental. Viewing is in HD, free landline calls are unlimited and, if you are also a heavy internet user, access is fast at speeds of up to 50Mb. Customers will be tied into a 12-month contract.

Other top deals

Next in line is BT's aptly-named TV, Broadband and Calls package, which also offers access to all six major sports viewing packages, plus the ESPN channel at no extra cost. In return, customers will pay around £48.99 a month, plus £11.54 line rental. The contract, however, is double the duration of Virgin Media's at 24 months.

Sky's See, Speak and Surf is perhaps the most 'all-singing, all-dancing' package - but consumers will pay accordingly. For an average monthly cost of £61 plus £11 line rental, the deal offers up to 212 non-subscription channels plus all entertainment, movies and sports packages as well as broadband and unlimited home phone calls. Contracts, however, will only tie you in for 12 months.

Free TV - and cheaper communication

If you are happy to hit the nearest participating pub for the most important matches and want to avoid paying for TV channels entirely, at least ensure you are not forking out over the odds for your home phone and broadband.

Again, the cheapest approach is to take a 'bundle' from the same provider, which will not only save you money but is more convenient to manage. Remember you can also add a Freeview box which cost as little as £20 and provide access to around 50 digital channels without the need for any monthly subscription charge.

On this basis, Virgin Media comes top of the tables with its Bundle product, priced at around £15 a month plus £11.99 line rental in under a 12-month contract. Next is BT's Broadband and Calls package at a monthly fee of £17.99 plus £11.54 line rental in exchange for a 24-month contract.

The small print

Consumers should always check their existing contract for home phone and broadband before switching. This is because throwing in the towel early on an agreement can mean incurring hefty charges, potentially wiping out the financial benefit of the bundle deal you are moving to.

Bear in mind also that finding 'the best' TV, broadband and home phone deal isn't always straightforward. "There are up to 6,000 variations on deals with variables such as HD, broadband speed and free landline calls, so it's easy to find yourself comparing apples with pears," says Mike Wilson.

He added that, on the plus side, consumers can now tailor packages to suit their exact needs.

When you do find the best package or bundle, bear in mind that access to it will be dependent on your postcode area.

Please note: Any rates or deals mentioned in this article were available at the time of writing.

Related Links

• Compare packages, including bundle deals, from UK broadband providers
• Compare all the latest mobile phones and 1000s of deals

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