BCD guide: What will be different on TV?

With the 2019/20 Premier League matches having resumed behind closed doors from Wednesday 17 June, here is a guide to what fans watching at home can look out for. 

Broadcast enhancements

One of the most recognisable and important features of Premier League football is the atmosphere created by the home and away supporters.

Working with our broadcast partners, a number of innovations have been developed to enhance the TV experience in the absence of fans in the stadium.

Stadium wraps

At all 20 Premier League stadiums, there will be a wrap covering seats in the lower tiers.

These stadium wraps will be designed by each club and will aim to improve the environment both visually and acoustically, as well as creating consistency across the competition.

Individual club activities

In addition to this, various clubs are also looking to enhance their stadiums in the absence of fans.

At Norwich City, club scarves donated by supporters will be tied to the railings of the players' tunnel.

At Molineux, Wolverhampton Wanderers will produce a giant mosaic of fans' faces to cover the Sir Jack Hayward Stand for the rest of the season.

While at Amex Stadium, Brighton & Hove Albion fans can buy personalised cut-outs of themselves to be displayed in the upper tier of the East Stand.

A percentage of the £20 fee will go to the club's Albion as One Fund, which has been helping the local community during the coronavirus pandemic.  

Enhanced coin toss

For the first time, fans might be able to listen in to the coin toss featuring the two captains and the match officials, as the audio will be captured live at certain matches.

Music and crowd noise

Clubs can use music at key trigger moments such as kick-off, goals and substitutions by the home club, but not while the ball is in play.

Fans watching from home will be able to enhance their viewing experience by selecting EA SPORTS Atmospheric Audio. 

This will give them crowd noise during the match recorded for EA from the teams’ fans in previous live matches.

But this crowd noise will not be heard by the players, as it will not be featured inside the stadium. 

Fans on big screens

At many matches there will be the chance for players to be connected to the fans, as live video feeds featuring 16 supporters from each club will be made available to broadcasters and to clubs for use on big screens.

Players will be able to see all the range of emotions their supporters go through during the match. 

Tottenham Hotspur are planning also to display fan photos and their messages of support on the big screens, as well as inside their dressing-room.

Similarly, Leicester City will have fan celebrations and messages on their LED screens. 

Celebration cams

Where feasible at stadiums, broadcasters will identify a celebration camera that players can head to after scoring so they can share their joy with the millions of fans watching around the world.

Tunnel cameras

In the build-up to matches, supporters will get to see what happens in the tunnel (or tunnels at certain stadiums) as there will be fixed cameras in place there to watch the players prepare for the match. However, these feeds will not include sound.

Also in this series

Introduction: Your essential guide to Premier League behind closed doors (BCD)
Part 1: BCD guide: Before the match
Part 2: BCD guide: During the match
Part 3: BCD guide: After the match
Part 5: BCD guide: Matchday features

Download: Premier League 2019/20 Season Restart guide (PDF; 807KB)