ACROSS THE AIRWAVES

The broadsheet I was reading today, once I waded through post Olympics stuuf, had a small advert for "Royal London" entitles "On this day in history" which happened to mention that the first televised football was on Match of the Day on August 22nd 1964. 20,000 viewers tuned in on BBC2 to watch highlights of Liverpool beating Arsenal 3-2 at Anfield.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIHPVNWqPPw

The BBC2 channel was relatively new and could only be picked up in and around London and only with televisions updated to the new 625 line. Clubs were suspicious of this innovation and believed that televised football would affect numbers on the terraces.

Several clubs tried to block the eventual move to BBC1 until BBC agreed not to reveal which match it was going to feature on Saturday's.

Televised football goes back to 1937 when a trial match between Arsenal and their Reserves was filmed on 16th September at Highbury. The great Arsenal manager Herbert Chapman, typically, was party to this innovation. Only TV owners close to Alexandra palace could get a signal. A year later the England v Scotland (9th April) and FA Cup Finals (30th April Huddersfield v PNE) began to be televised annually.

It wasn't until 1947 that a 5th Round FA Cup tie between Charlton and Blackburn Rovers was televised fully and the 1954 World Cup managed to get to some sets in the UK for the first time.

When floodlights had been introduced the European Cup ties became more accessible on ITV and gradually matches were showcased on programmes such as BBC's "Soccer Special" and in 1964 "Match of the Day". This was gradually leading up to having TV in place more reliably for the 1966 World Cup which of course went terribly well.

By 1969 MOTDay showed Liverpool v West Ham in colour for the first time.