The rising cost of watching televised football in the UK has upset many fans.Amazon’s arrival in the rights battle has only added to the cost, with a Prime subscription costing £7.99 a month.If you have Sky Sports and BT Sport subscriptions as well, watching all the action in the 2019-20 campaign won’t be cheap.The Sky Sports subscription has always been the most valued as it shows the most matches. But it’s also the costliest, with deals reaching as much as £67.50 a month.However, the broadcaster could explore new ways to use their rights to show Premier League football.

According to the Daily Mail, Sky are ready to put free Premier League highlights on YouTube shortly after matches finish this season.

They are giving ‘serious thought’ to putting three-minute clips on YouTube in a move that could seriously impact viewing figures for the BBC’s Match of the Day.

Gary Lineker reacts on Twitter

Sky have always had the option of showing Premier League clips. But until now, they haven’t taken up the option of making highlights available to non-paying viewers - besides brief clips on social media.

Insiders insist the BBC shouldn’t be concerned by Sky’s plans because the YouTube videos will not come with expert analysis or extend to the length of Match of the Day’s coverage of games.

And host Gary Lineker isn’t worried, tweeting: “No threat at all. 🙄”

Sky would also insist that those watching highlights on their smart phones represent a different demographic to Match of the Day’s traditional audience.

Still, the option of watching three-minute clips of matches hours before Match of the Day is aired could concern senior figures at the BBC.

The national broadcaster retained the rights to screen Premier League highlights in the UK earlier this year.

They will continue to air Match of the Day until 2022 after bidding £211.5 million for the rights.

That was a rise of £7.5m on the previous deal.