ITV Takes Over From Channel 4 As Home Of England Men’s Soccer Qualifiers
ITV has won the rights to show England men’s soccer qualifiers from 2024 to 2028.
All games outside major tournaments will be shown on the commercial broadcaster, which takes over from Channel 4 as rightsholder.
At least 40 matches – around 10 per season – will be shown by ITV, with the first set of qualifiers following England’s bid to reach the 2026 World Cup finals in North America.
ITV already co-hosts coverage of major tournaments with the BBC, with the pair taking roughly the same amount of matches per tournament. ITV also holds broadcast rights for England Women’s football team matches until 2025 and shared rights for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023.
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Channel 4 took over from ITV and Sky last year and its deal will run out in 2024. That move had been criticized by some in the UK TV production sector in recent months due to the Channel 4 commissioning slowdown, with sources airing frustrations that the broadcaster had spent so much on lucrative sports rights deals such as the soccer matches.
“We’re delighted to bring the England men’s team back to ITV, which keeps coverage of their progress between major tournaments on free to air television,” said ITV Director of Sport Niall Sloane. “We have an experienced team here who are looking forward to bringing viewers all the action and insight from England’s qualification campaigns in the coming years.”
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