The nearest Premier League club to where I live is Southampton. It would take me five hours to drive there, if I were lucky. The nearest Football League club, in League Two, is an hour and a half away. I've been a fan of Liverpool for decades but have never seen them play live because of where I am. The one time I knew I was going to be in Liverpool, I couldn't get a ticket even four months in advance (they were playing Villa). I can watch Champions League matches on BT Sport Mobile, which I pay handsomely for. I'm considering my position. If they up their prices I ring them up and threaten to leave BT broadband. I always get a better deal for BT Sport that way. Most of the Premier League matches are on Sky. I had Sky Sports mobile for years until a few months ago when they hiked up their prices astronomically. I might watch a match a week on average for about seven or eight months a year. My annual subs cost me hundreds, or at least they did until I butted out of Sky. No club staff are needed to look after me, no police, no security, no facilities. I think I've been paying my way, but who knows where the money goes. I don't see how I've made things harder for those who go to games.

The kickoff times and days are spread out so that as many matches can be lucratively screened as possible. The international audience for our Premier League is massive, and they pay big, big money to watch the televised games, which is why the broadcasters and club owners don't give a damn about domestic fans. It was at least something to hear Klopp and Milner speaking out, though with one hand clearly tied behind their backs. This deal will give around half the number of Champions League clubs, or some that fail even to qualify, at least twice as much money. When I say clubs, I do of course mean the owners.