The Premier League is reportedly planning to increase the number of matches broadcast live in the UK from 168 to 190 per season.
The move to make 50% of games available for live domestic broadcast comes as TV regulator Ofcom announced that it was abandoning a two-year investigation into the sale of Premier League rights.
Cable operator Virgin Media complained to Ofcom about the PL rights auction in 2014, claiming that the league's decision not to make all 380 games available for live broadcast had led to inferior choices and inflated prices for consumers.
In Spain and Germany, viewers are able to watch every game from La Liga and the Bundesliga live at a fraction of the cost paid by their UK counterparts - while in the UK, a long-standing rule means that football matches cannot be broadcast live between 2.45pm and 5.15pm on a Saturday.
Ofcom sources told The Telegraph that the regulator did not have "enough capacity" to rule on the matter but had agreed a compromise with the Premier League that would see an additional 22 games broadcast in the UK from the 2019-20 season.
The next set of rights, running from 2019 to the end of the 2021-22 season, are due to be decided by a blind auction at the end of next year.
The current set of rights comes into effect this season and saw Sky Sports and BT Sport pay a combined £5.1 billion, a rise of 71%. In response, both Sky and BT raised subscription prices this summer by as much as 8%.
Neil Wilkes
