With less than a month to go until the 2026 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, the BBC has announced its line-up of pundits and presenters.
Wayne Rooney and Micah Richards will work for the BBC (Image: Matt Watson/Southampton FC via Getty Images)
The BBC has announced its star-studded line-up for this summer’s World Cup, as it takes on rivals ITV. Former England stars Wayne Rooney, Alan Shearer and Micah Richards are set to join the pundit team for football’s biggest tournament.
Presenters include Mark Chapman, Kelly Cates, Gabby Logan and Alex Scott. But rather than staying in North America for the entire tournament, ITV will travel stateside much earlier, starting by hosting the show from a “state-of-the-art immersive studio” in Salford.
Former England players Joe Hart, Paul Robinson, Steph Houghton, Ellen White and Danny Murphy will also take up pundit duties across the channel. Scott Brown, Rachel Coursey and James McFadden will be playing in Scotland’s first World Cup since 1998.
Olivier Giroud, Gael Clichy, Cesar Azpilicueta, Benni McCarthy and Lucas Leyva have been signed to add a global touch to the BBC’s coverage. Former Tottenham and Brentford manager Thomas Frank and former Wales captain Ashley Williams will also provide analysis.
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Former referee Darren Kang will also provide insight into all the big decisions in the US, Canada and Mexico. Cann also appeared on the Beeb’s FA Cup final broadcast on Saturday, as did Rooney, Richards and Chapman.
This summer’s 104-match tournament will be the BBC’s first World Cup since Gary Lineker’s premature exit last year. Mr Lineker, 65, resigned from his role as the BBC’s chief football presenter in May 2025 as he was set to withdraw from the 2026 New Jersey final after sharing an Instagram post with anti-Semitic overtones.
Alex Kagelski, BBC Director of Sport, said: “The BBC is transforming the biggest World Cup in history into the most iconic World Cup ever. We will bring fans closer to every game, every moment and every story than ever before.”
BBC is preparing for the World Cup (Image: BBC)
“Sport brings people together in a true way like no other, so we can’t wait for our fans to not only watch live matches with us, but also enjoy a wealth of soccer content all day every day on our platform.
“With new series on YouTube and iPlayer, the biggest news stories from our website and apps, daily podcasts from Sounds, and the hottest moments from social media, we’ll be supporting our viewers 24/7 this summer, transporting them directly to the heart of the World Cup.”
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Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundles to include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, plus 135 channels and complete coverage of the Premier League and EFL from Sky.
Sky has over 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more, with at least 215 of those live from the top flight, along with F1, darts and golf.
