Alan Shearer has rubbished talk of a rivalry existing between BBC and ITV pundits at Euro 2024.
The two UK broadcasters have both been showing the action since the tournament began in Germany on June 14. ITV showed the exclusive live coverage of the opener between Germany and Scotland in Munich, along with England’s final Group C game against Slovenia, while the BBC showed England’s first two matches.
Each broadcaster has its own set of pundits and commentators at tournaments, leading to an ever-lasting debate among fans about which provides the better coverage. That prompted Micah Richards to read out a fan question on The Rest Is Football podcast, asking Shearer whether the competition between them for viewing figures extends to the actual pundits.
Initially asked whether the pundits can still meet up and mingle with each other, Shearer, who works alongside Richards for the BBC, joked: “You have, you’ve had dinner or lunch with some of the guys, haven’t you? You told us that you sat with Roy Keane on the way home.”
Shearer added: “I’ve been texting Roy. I’m waiting for a couple of days off so I can go and have lunch with him.”
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Richards then asked: “Is there no rivalry? Because I’ve asked Gaz ( Gary Lineker) this before, is it forbidden?”
The Newcastle legend responded: “No it’s not forbidden, they’re pals aren’t they? Whether there’s competition between the top management, I don’t know. They always look at the viewing figures don’t they and they want the biggest views. I don’t think there’s a competition there between the pundits, do you?”
“I wouldn’t say there’s competition but you want to do well, don’t you?” Richards replied. “It comes with pressure doesn’t it and you want to perform.”
The BBC's Euro 2024 coverage is presented by Gary Lineker [L] (BBC Sport)The ITV and BBC pundits’ friendly rivalry was on display during the World Cup in Qatar, where they took the opportunity to play a match against each other in the searing heat. A clip posted on social media by ITV showed Keane scoring the winning goal past Richards on that occasion, before ripping off his T-shirt and celebrating.
Former Manchester City defender Richards was adamant, however, that there was considerably more scrutiny regarding his punditry during the tournament than his regular role on Match of the Day. He said: “Definitely! Saturday night on Match of the Day is a piece of p***!
“Honest to God. People don’t understand, when you’re just chatting here everything is laid back, we say what we want and we know certain parts can be edited out. But when you’re doing live TV and you’re trying to navigate your words so you don’t disrespect someone…
“For one you don’t swear. But also you’re trying to give insight and educate people. When big games like England games are on, that’s when you want a really good performance.”
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