Pubs face court for illegally screening matches

Pubs illegally showing Premier League football matches on foreign decoders and satellites will continue to face prosecution – despite a European Court ruling they believed offered them protection, it can be revealed today.

The Red Lion pub in Willenhall was this week hit with a £4,000 fine and investigators today warned they are continuing to monitor others across the region.

Landlords across Staffordshire and the Black Country believed a recent ruling from a top European judge opened the gates for them to be able to show games through cut-price networks.

But although that ruling is likely to become law in the UK following a High Court hearing on February 24, it currently remains illegal to show games unless it is through a Sky or ESPN subscription package.

Convictions can be appealed, but the cost of doing so would see venues having to pay thousands of pounds in legal fees.

Wolves today welcomed the conviction of Willenhall's Red Lion pub, which was fined on Tuesday for showing a game through an Albanian-based TV firm.

Club chief executive Jez Moxey has criticised the use of foreign decoders, saying attendances at Molineux were 2,500 down last season because of the problem.

Spokesman Matt Grayson said today: "It has been clear all along that the use of foreign equipment not only breaches copyright law, but also contravenes the 3pm closed window on a Saturday that states no broadcaster can legitimately show games at that time.

"We welcome the fact that the Premier League continues to closely monitor those people illegally broadcasting football matches."

West Bromwich Albion chief executive Mark Jenkins said: "We wholeheartedly support the Premier League's efforts to stamp out the illegal screening of matches because it is unfair on the fans who attend the club's fixtures."

Landlords today said they feel they have been "left in limbo" following the prosecution of the Red Lion. Ian Scott, who has managed Bar Sport in High Green, Cannock, for 12 years, said showing games through foreign decoders brought a lot of custom to the bar. "It's heaving on a Saturday, especially for Wolves games," he said.

"In the Red Lion case, it seems very harsh that the authorities have been so heavy-handed over something that will be legal next month."

Meanwhile Mark Whyman, landlord of the Coach and Horses, in Mill Bank, Stafford, remained defiant over his showing of games through a £200-a-month ViaSat system. He said: "I'm not going to stop. I need the custom."

Pete Towler, landlord at Tipton's Mad O'Rourkes Pie Factory, shows games through a foreign decoder.

He said: "It's such a shame because it only seems to be the smaller independent pubs that are being hit with fines.

"The ability to show the football offers a real lifeline for many publicans and Sky is too expensive."

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