Scottish FA concern over English TV clash with European games

The Scottish Football Association will write to Uefa expressing concern about a televised FA Cup tie taking place at the same time as a European tie.

St Johnstone and Hearts were prevented last month from televising a Scottish Cup replay on a Thursday because it clashed with Europa League fixtures.

Both Manchester City and Manchester United were in action that evening.

Yet Chelsea's replay away to Birmingham City was allowed to take place while Arsenal were beating AC Milan 3-0.

A Uefa spokesman told BBC Scotland that action could be taken against the English FA as a result because of an agreement preventing games being televised in the same territory as clubs involved in European football.

"The executive committee will now examine the case at the end of the season and sanctions could be taken against them," he said.

"What these sanctions will be is impossible to say."

The Scottish Cup tie at McDiarmid Park would have been televised.

So the decision to move it two days earlier to 14 February cost Saints and Hearts £82,500 each and a furious SFA is to write to Uefa underlining its concern about the refusal to allow the game to go ahead.

There is talk within Hampden of "wanton disregard" by the English for rules that have hit hard on the already financially stretched Scottish game.

Uefa has ruled that, from next season, you cannot even have a national cup final on the same day as the Champions' League final.

However, televising Tuesday's Barclay's Premier League game between Liverpool and Everton was not a contravention of Uefa's agreement as there were no British clubs involved in that evening's Champions League ties.

The FA in England is likely to argue that that the FA Cup tie, which Chelsea won 2-0, was scheduled for last Tuesday as it was only available date ahead of the quarter-finals because of the Stamford Bridge side's participation in this week's Champions League fixtures.

Taken from the BBC