A long-term campaign fighting to keep football accessible for the fans.
As Premier League broadcasting becomes increasingly fragmented and expensive, Paywall FC serves as a data-driven campaign fighting to bring the sport back to the fans. I developed this web experience to visually expose rising costs and streaming blackouts, combining bold brand identity with functional front-end development.
Like many others, I love the sport; it's been a big part of my life for as long as I can remember. With some of my fondest memories coming from watching the game around my friends. The laughs, the arguments, and the joy are irreplaceable.
As someone that was never able to have the channels because of the expense, I know that it is a problem, and with the rising costs it will only get worse.
(I'm pretty sure we streamed this game here lol)
Football fans are being silenced by their own wallets, split across endless platforms, priced out of their passion and ignored by the leagues and broadcasters profiting from it.
The Reality
5Mill+
UK fans regularly pirate games.
15%
Of Premier League games blacked out, even with the premium cost.
£820+
Is the minimum UK fans pay to follow their team in just the Premier League.
The cost isn’t just financial. Fans are being cut off from the culture of watching together.
Lewis Darley
“GREEDY FXCKXNG BXSTXRDS”
FINDINGS
- Will watch football at the pub as a pint is cheaper than streaming a game at home
- Hates the blackout — believes it actually hurts local businesses and punishes the fans who pay the most
- Misses games all the time because of not having the right subscriptions, leaving him with only the highlights
Paywall FC
I intend to solve this by building a hypothetical club to represent the millions of UK fans, highlighting the rising cost of watching the game, with a long-term plan to bring it back to the fans.
I tested two different directions with A being an old logo and system and B being a new.
Direction B won. The high contrast yellow and black, Kanit typography, and updated badge felt more distinctive and modern.
I took direction B forward and introduced logo variations.
Once I built out the site in the final design direction I took it to be used and critiqued by Dewey.
There was a big love of the copy — it was received and understood well.
But Dewey got stuck at the calculator. He liked the feature but didn't want to scroll through all of the fixtures.
This resulted in a simple skip button being added in, taking you straight to the big reveal to improve the UX.
Paywall FC gives fans a place to unite, putting the rising costs front and centre, with a club to get behind, turning peoples frustration into a collective voice the Premier League can't ignore.
Lessons
- The cost isn't just financial — fans are being cut off from the culture of watching together, and that's just the beginning of it
- Interviewing real fans revealed how normalised the frustration is — fans have adapted rather than demanded change
- A hypothetical product still needs a realistic business model — a fan-owned or fan-funded structure needs more exploration
Next Steps
- Test the site with real fan groups and supporters to measure resonance and see if they would sign
- Develop the petition and collective action mechanic — what does “joining” actually mean for a fan?
- Explore partnership with existing fan advocacy organisations like the FSA
- Investigate the legal and rights landscape — what can actually be challenged, and by whom?
