ITV has announced that it will broadcast a selection of iconic matches from the ITV Sport archives over the coming weeks as part of its new ITV Football Classics series.
In the absence of live games on the box due to the coronavirus pandemic, ITV’s Football Classics will give fans an hour-long retro-tastic festival of great football action, starting on Saturday, 2 May (moving to Thursday nights from episode six onwards).
All eight episodes will be introduced by Gabriel Clarke and include extended match highlights, as well as classic clips and moments from ITV presenters, pundits and personalities at the time, including Ian St John and Jimmy Greaves – known as “Saint and Greavsie” during their heyday at the helm of ITV’s football coverage in the 1980s.
The series starts with a look back at the memorable FA Cup final between Coventry City and Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley Stadium.
On a sunny day in May 1987, Coventry legends including Cyrille Regis, Brian ‘Killer’ Kilcline and Steve Ogrozovic took on a Spurs side packed with names like Glenn Hoddle, Chris Waddle and Ossie Ardiles, the latter strong favourites with seven FA Cup victories up to that point.
It was Coventry’s first ever FA Cup final, and they produced a memorable performance to mark the occasion, as the two sides shared five goals and needed extra time to decide the destination of the Cup.
Further classic ITV matches from yesteryear that will be featured on the series include the 1979 FA Cup final between Arsenal and Manchester United, and the unforgettable 1989 Division One title-decider between Liverpool and Arsenal, which provided one of the greatest finales to a league season.
International football will also feature prominently, including England’s memorable World Cup clashes against Cameroon in 1990 and Colombia in 2018, as well as Wales’ Euro 2016 quarter-final against Belgium.
ITV’s new Football Classics series will compliment its upcoming rerun of the entire Euro 96 championship in May across ITV4 and its online streaming platform ITV Hub.
Fans will be able to relive the drama of every match from that epic summer, during which host nation fought to bring the trophy back home, with a squad made up of England legends including Alan Shearer, David Seaman, Paul Gascoigne, Sol Campbell and Teddy Sheringham.
Broadcast details of all forthcoming ITV Football Classics on ITV and STV can be found below once confirmed (all TV times subject to change). All eight episodes will available to watch live or via catch-up on ITV Hub.
Further classic football clips from the ITV archives can be found via the ITV Sport YouTube channel – youtube.com/itvsport – including special interviews, features and action from iconic matches.
For a full overview of all major UK-televised sporting events that have been postponed, cancelled or rescheduled, as well as those which are still due to be staged, visit SOTB’s dedicated coronavirus webpage – sotb.in/coronavirus.
Watch ITV Football Classics on ITV and STV, starting on Saturday, 2 May at 5pm
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SATURDAY 2nd MAY
ITV FOOTBALL CLASSICS: EPISODE 1
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Ian St John and Jimmy Greaves hosted coverage of the 1987 FA Cup final at the old Wembley Stadium, which proved to be one of the most memorable showpiece matches in the competition’s history.
Gabriel Clarke introduces the programme, with match commentary on the day from Brian Moore and Ron Atkinson.
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SATURDAY 9th MAY
ITV FOOTBALL CLASSICS: EPISODE 2
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Gabriel Clarke introduces extended highlights of the 1979 FA Cup Final between Arsenal and Manchester United, which featured one of the most dramatic endings in the competition’s history.
The Arsenal side featured many club legends such as Pat Jennings and Liam Brady, whilst Martin Buchan captained a Manchester United side that included Joe Jordan and Jimmy Greenhoff.
ITV’s commentators at Wembley Stadium that day were Brian Moore and Brian Clough.
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SATURDAY 16th MAY
ITV FOOTBALL CLASSICS: EPISODE 3
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Extended highlights of England’s highly entertaining 1990 FIFA World Cup quarter-final match against Cameroon, a match which went all the way to extra time and produced five goals.
Gabriel Clarke introduces the action, with the original ITV coverage on the night presented by Elton Welsby at the stadium in Naples and Nick Owen in the studio, pre-match analysis by Bobby Moore and Jimmy Greaves, and match commentary led by Brian Moore.
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SATURDAY 23rd MAY
ITV FOOTBALL CLASSICS: EPISODE 4
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Elton Welsby presented ITV’s live coverage on the night of an extraordinary encounter at Anfield, which saw Arsenal needing to win by at least two goals to pip their opponents to the 1988/89 Division One title.
Studio analysis came from Bobby Robson, match commentary from Brian Moore and David Pleat, whilst Jim Rosenthal was on the touchline with reports and interviews.
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SATURDAY 30th MAY
ITV FOOTBALL CLASSICS: EPISODE 5
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Gabriel Clarke introduces a look back at the memorable last-16 tie at Otkritie Arena, Moscow, which was decided by a penalty shootout.
ITV’s exclusive live coverage of the match was presented by Mark Pougatch, with analysis from Ian Wright, Lee Dixon and Gary Neville. Match commentary came from Clive Tyldesley and Glenn Hoddle.
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THURSDAY 11th JUNE
ITV FOOTBALL CLASSICS: EPISODE 6
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Gabriel Clarke introduces action from the memorable Group A match at Euro 96, which was played at Wembley Stadium.
Bob Wilson presented ITV’s live coverage that night, with studio analysis from John Barnes and Jack Charlton, and match commentary by Brian Moore and Kevin Keegan.
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THURSDAY 18th JUNE
ITV FOOTBALL CLASSICS: EPISODE 7
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Gabriel Clarke introduces more action from Euro 96 – the semi-final between England and Germany at Wembley Stadium, which was decided by a penalty shootout.
Bob Wilson presented the coverage, with studio analysis from Glenn Hoddle, Jack Charlton and John Barnes, and commentary by Brian Moore and Kevin Keegan.
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THURSDAY 18th JUNE
ITV FOOTBALL CLASSICS: EPISODE 8
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Gabriel Clarke introduces the final classic match of the series – the Euro 2016 quarter-final between Wales and Belgium at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Lille, France.
Chris Coleman’s side had impressed many to reach the knockout rounds, with Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey in starring roles, but it was their less-celebrated teammates who grabbed the headlines against the highly-fancied Belgians in this entertaining match.
Match commentary from Clive Tyldesley and Craig Bellamy.
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