Gabby Logan has defended the ’s plan to cover parts of the World Cup from a studio in Salford, after Gary Lineker said he would be in New York City for the tournament instead of in a green box in the north of England. Logan said the corporation had already used the same approach during the Women’s Euros and saw no reason to treat the next global event differently.
“We did the Women’s Euros - last Euros - like this where we were in the studio in Salford and then we went out for the latter stages,” Logan said. “That’s a very expensive cost to take out a lot of people to major tournaments.”
Her comments came as the prepares for a World Cup spread across the United States, Canada and Mexico, with Logan set to be part of a large on-air team. The broadcaster’s presenters and pundits will include Wayne Rooney, Micah Richards, Alan Shearer, Joe Hart, Paul Robinson, Steph Houghton, Ellen White and Danny Murphy, while Scott Brown, Rachel Corsie and James McFadden will represent Scotland. The has also signed Olivier Giroud, Gael Clichy, Cesar Azpilicueta, Benni McCarthy and Lucas Leiva, with Thomas Frank and Ashley Williams also joining the coverage. Former referee Darren Cann will provide insight on decisions across the three host countries.
Logan said the decision had to be viewed against the ’s finances and its public funding model. “The belt is being tightened all the time, as you know, with the licence fee,” she said. “And I think our coverage has been exceptional in those tournaments and award-winning in the case of last week's Baftas so I don't think it's harmed our coverage to not be there for the whole tournament.”
Lineker, who was last year removed from his £1.35million-a-year role as the ’s highest-paid star after a controversial social media post about Israel, said he had originally been set to front the broadcaster’s World Cup coverage this summer. “I was originally going to do it for the this summer but that didn't transpire,” he said at the London launch of Netflix's Sports Club. “And I would have been in Salford in a green box and now I’m going to be in New York City overlooking Times Square with lots of great guests.”
The exchange highlights a practical shift in how the is handling one of sport’s biggest events. Instead of sending every presenter and pundit to North America, it is leaning on a mix of studio work in Salford and selected on-site coverage, a model it has already used on major tournaments. For the broadcaster, that means trying to balance reach, cost and the familiar expectation that big events come with big travel. For Logan, the argument is simple: the coverage can still be strong without moving everyone across the Atlantic.
