Manchester United vice chairman Ed Woodward has predicted that Amazon and Facebook will attempt to buy Premier League broadcasting rights.

Currently, the domestic rights to broadcast the Premier League in Britain are shared between TV companies, Sky Sports and BT Sports.

They paid a combined £5.1bn for that privilege in 2016, contributing to a drastic change in the financial landscape of the Premier League.

Clubs are now richer than ever before, transfer fees have escalated out of control and subscription fees to watch the Premier League on Sky or BT have increased to compensate for their ludicrous spending.

The rights will be up for auction again in 2018, and Manchester United’s vice-chairman Ed Woodward foresees internet juggernauts Amazon and Facebook getting involved.

“Absolutely I think they will enter the mix,” Woodward said, as reported by The Evening Standard.

“Anecdotally there was incredibly strong interest in the last cycle. We are hearing that around the Premier League table and we are also hearing that from a European perspective in terms of interest in the Champions League and Europa rights.

“I do think we are going to see an increasing engagement from these and we would welcome the interest (in the Premier League).

“It’s going to be increasingly important to digitally engage with fans and we think we can be complementary to partners like this.” 

Should they decide to bid, the price could get even higher, resulting in even more TV money for the Premier League.

Elsewhere, it could have a huge effect on how people watch the Premier League.

There’s been a increase in the number of people who are using illegal streams to watch the Premier League, with the main reason being the high prices that TV companies charge.

Amazon and Facebook, who have streamed the NFL and MLS, might be able to offer a more suitable package to fans and one that’s more in-line with modern viewing habits.