ITV have revealed their broadcast plans and line-up for World Cup 2026, including a new 24/7 channel on ITVX and the surprise inclusion of Man v Food star Adam Richman.
This summer’s tournament in Canada, Mexico, and the United States, which starts on Thursday 11 June and runs until Sunday 19 July, is set to be the biggest ever after the expansion to 48 teams.
All 104 matches from World Cup 2026 will be available on free-to-air TV for UK viewers. 51 of those will be broadcast live on ITV channels and online via ITVX, with 54 shown on the BBC.
Among the big games that ITV will have coverage for are the tournament opener between Mexico and South Africa, England’s first and final Group L fixtures, Scotland’s group game against Morocco, and three of the four quarter-finals.
Leading the broadcaster’s coverage from their studio in New York City will be Mark Pougatch, Laura Woods, and Semra Hunter.
In a surprise inclusion, they are joined in ITV’s roster by Richman, who made his name taking on eating challenges in the reality TV series Man v Food. He will be joined by celebrity guests to discuss all the big social and cultural moments from the World Cup.
ITV has confirmed an impressive roster of pundits, which includes Roy Keane, Ian Wright, Gary Neville, Patrick Vieira, Karen Carney, Ange Postecoglou, Juan Mata, Emma Hayes, Duncan Ferguson, Jobi McAnuff, and Bradley Wright-Phillips.
The live match coverage will be soundtracked by the familiar voices of commentators such as Sam Matterface, Jon Champion, Seb Hutchinson, and Joe Speight, who will be paired with co-commentators such as Lee Dixon, Ally McCoist, Andros Townsend, and Lucy Ward.
At his 19th major tournament, Gabriel Clarke will be the broadcaster’s England reporter, while Connie McLaughlin will provide all the latest news from the Scotland camp, and Daniyal Khan is ITV Sport’s social reporter.
Beyond the live match coverage, the broadcaster has also revealed plans for a World Cup 24/7 channel on ITVX, which will show 40 classic World Cup matches as well as series on the 16 host cities and every team’s route to the tournament.
There will also be a 24/7 stream on the ITV Sport YouTube channel showing up-to-date highlights, interviews and features, while a new digital series ‘Inside the World Cup’ will be part of their offering across social channels.
Want to see this content?
This page contains content provided by Google reCAPTCHA. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as Google reCAPTCHA may use cookies and other technologies. To view this content, choose ‘Accept and continue’ to allow Google reCAPTCHA and its required purposes.
“This is the biggest FIFA World Cup in history and we will be live from New York City for the duration of the tournament, bringing every key moment to life, free-to-air,” said ITV director of sport Niall Sloane.
“Nothing unifies the UK audience more than a global sporting event and they don’t come much bigger than this. Our broadcast line-up is second to none and our comprehensive coverage across ITV, ITVX, our World Cup 24/7 Channel, plus our digital platforms will ensure the ITV audience doesn’t miss a second of action.”
World Cup 2026 gets under way on Thursday 11 June. The first of 51 matches live on ITV and ITVX is Mexico v South Africa at 8pm on Thursday 11 June.
Check out more of our Sport coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what’s on. For more TV recommendations and reviews, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
