2018/19 football season on BBC Sport

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After one of the most unforgettable World Cups that witnessed England’s memorable run to the semi-finals and huge audiences  tune in to watch all the action, the BBC has revealed its coverage for the 2018/19 football season, led by the return of the corporation’s flagship football programme Match Of The Day to BBC One from Saturday, 11 August.

From the top flight to women’s football and younger audiences, the BBC will cover the football season across seven different regular football shows on TV and online, led by Match of the Day on Saturdays, presented by Gary Lineker, with the usual repeat on Sunday mornings, Match of the Day 2 with Mark Chapman on Sunday evenings, and previewing the weekend’s action across the UK, Football Focus with Dan Walker on Saturdays at 12pm.

Final Score returns for its 70th year on the BBC, hosted by Jason Mohammed every Saturday from 2.30pm on the Red Button and online, with BBC One or BBC Two joining the programme at around 4.30pm, while The Premier League Show is back on Thursdays, presented by Gabby Logan, starting 13 September; The Women’s Football Show with Eilidh Barbour on Sundays on BBC One, starting 9 September, and for younger football fans there is MOTD Kickabout on CBBC on Saturdays.

The BBC will be showing every game from the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup next summer and August marks the start of a huge year for the women’s game, as the crucial World Cup qualifier between Wales and England to determine which of the home nations gains automatic qualification will be shown exclusively live on BBC Two on Friday, 31 August.

Following on from the international action will be the start of the FA Women’s Super League on 8 September, where a game will be streamed live every weekend, before the Women’s Football Show later that night. The women’s FA Cup final will also be live on the BBC on Saturday, 4 May, along with semi-final highlights the month before.

From the very first kick to the last, the BBC will bring you all of the drama from the FA Cup starting on 11 August with Haverhill Rovers against Haverhill Borough. The BBC Sport website, app and BBC iPlayer will live-stream six qualifying matches ahead of the First Round proper which begins on Saturday, 10 November.

Fans can enjoy 16 live free-to-air FA Cup matches on BBC TV and highlights of every round’s coverage of the oldest and most prestigious domestic cup competition in world football builds towards the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, 18 May.

On-screen the BBC welcomes back regular pundits Alan Shearer, Ian Wright, Jermaine Jenas, Martin Keown, Alex Scott, Danny Murphy, Ruud Gullit, Dion Dublin, Phil Neville, Paul Ince, Matthew Upson, Kevin Kilbane, Mark Lawrenson and Garth Crooks.

Guiding fans through the on-field action will be the accomplished line-up of commentators for 2018-19 which includes Guy Mowbray, Steve Wilson, Vicki Sparks, Jonathan Pearce, Simon Brotherton, Robyn Cowen and Steve Bower.

The BBC Sport website, app and Red Button will continue to offer fans comprehensive coverage of the football season across digital platforms and social media.

There will be live coverage of all the big games, starting with live text and radio commentary from the season’s opening match between Manchester United and Leicester City on 10 August.

Fans can read reports on every match across the Premier League, EFL and Scottish Premiership and Scottish League throughout the season along with previews, the latest breaking news from every club, and reaction from managers and players.

Match Of The Day pundits will provide additional opinion and analysis on all the big talking points while the BBC Sport’s European football experts, including new signing Guillem Balague, will interview some of football’s biggest names and write regular columns. 

There is a wealth of content and ways to engage with programmes via BBC Sport’s social media accounts which reach more than 30m followers.

On radio, BBC 5 Live will bring listeners live commentary of 144 live Premier League matches this season, more than any other UK broadcaster. 

Ian Wright, Jermaine Jenas, Paul Ince, Chris Waddle, Dion Dublin, Chris Sutton and Pat Nevin lead 5 Live’s expert team of pundits, while Kelly Cates takes on a new role presenting 5 Live Sport on Tuesday evenings, introducing coverage of some of the biggest football games including UEFA Champions League matches.

There will also be coverage of the Champions League, Europa League, FA Cup, League Cup, EFL, Scottish Premiership and international ties, plus live coverage of the FA Women’s Super League and England Women internationals.

Alongside the launch of its 2018/19 season coverage, the BBC is also searching to find a new generation of commentators via the BBC Sport New Voices scheme, with the aim of adding two new people to the BBC’s commentary pool.

This scheme has a proven record of producing some very talented commentators, including Vicki Sparks, who became the first woman to commentate on a televised World Cup game this summer, and Chris Latchem who has had recent golf and boxing stints behind the microphone.

Commenting on the BBC Sport New Voices scheme, Vicki Sparks, who became the first woman to commentate on a World Cup finals match on UK television at Russia 2018 for the BBC, said:

“I applied for the BBC’s New Voices scheme having only commentated on one match in my life for local radio.

“Being part of a scheme like this is great because it allows you to hone your skills in a supportive environment, whilst receiving the benefit of top-class training and feedback.

“Four years on and this summer I took another massive stride in my career as I became the first woman to commentate on a televised World Cup match which was Portugal v Morocco.

“If you love talking about sport, and wish you could do it as a career; if you listen to the radio or TV and find yourself completely swept up in dramatic commentary moments; if you’ve ever turned the sound off and pretended that you’re the one describing the action, then this scheme is probably made for you.”

Full details of how to apply for the BBC Sport New Voices scheme can be found via the BBC website.

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