ITV has announced its 2026 FIFA men’s World Cup plans across traditional linear TV and streaming platforms, with coverage led by Mark Pougatch, Laura Woods and Semra Hunter.
- First two games of the tournament exclusively live on ITV1/ITVX or STV/STV Player.
- ITV coverage based from studios in Brooklyn.
- YouTube channel allows fans to drop in to watch highlights and interviews
ITV Sport has announced details of their World Cup coverage, which starts on 11 June.
The broadcaster has the rights to screen 29 group-stage matches, including England’s first match of the tournament against Croatia live from Dallas kicking off at 9pm (UK) on Wednesday 17 June, England’s final group-stage match against Panama, kick off 10pm (UK) on 27 June and Scotland’s group-stage match against Morocco, 11pm (UK) on the 19 June.
ITV is also the home broadcaster of the first matches of the tournament for current World Champions Argentina, and key footballing nations Germany, the Netherlands and Spain.
The BBC and ITV will negotiate who carries games in later rounds, with details released shortly before the games take place. ITV has three of the top picks for the Quarter-Final stages of the tournament including the first two picks, plus five of the top nine picks of the round of 32.
Both broadcasters will carry the final live on their main channels.
ITV to launch two streaming channels
YOUTUBE On the ITV Sport YouTube channel, football fans will be able to access all the latest content via a 24/7 stream, with up to date highlights, interviews and features playing right throughout the tournament.
A deal with FIFA means ITV can follow the BBC in screening the first ten minutes of a game on YouTube. After that point, it has to direct viewers to ITVX (or STV Player). The move is a trade-off between broadcasters who have paid for exclusive coverage and the growing demand among viewers who want easy access to live streams.
ITVX On ITVX, ITV will launch a World Cup 24/7 Channel featuring 40 classic World Cup matches, FIFA World Cup: Stories From The Cities – a 16-part series from FIFA exploring each host city and FIFA World Cup Preview, a 12-part series from FIFA covering each team’s route to the tournament.
On-demand coverage of all games shown on ITV will be available to ITVX wanting to catch-up on the overnight action from North America. Viewers in central and northern Scotland can find on-demand and live streaming coverage on STV Player. ITV will also post highlights and clips on its social media feeds.
ITV’s pundits and commentators
The full list of pundits bringing you all of the action live from ITV’s studios in Brooklyn, New York, 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.
Commentary will be led by Sam Matterface, Jon Champion, Seb Hutchinson and Joe Speight. Co-commentary is provided by Lee Dixon, Ally McCoist, Andros Townsend and Lucy Ward.
ITV reporters on the ground will be Gabriel Clarke and Connie McLaughlin.
Christina Unkel will return to ITV as the Referee Analyst to provide insights into the biggest refereeing decisions across the tournament, as well as the big VAR calls.
Adam Richman, of Man v Food fame, will co-present alongside Semra Hunter in ITV’s Brooklyn studio. A special section of the studio will serve as a third eye on the tournament, examining all of the biggest World Cup social and cultural moments.
Adam will be joined by celebrity guests and is set to bring his unique broadcasting perspective on the world’s greatest tournament.
Daniyal Khan will be ITV Sport’s social reporter, out and about on the streets of New York, offering a flavour of the tournament on the ground.
Announcing ITV’s coverage plans, ITV Director of Sport, Niall Sloane, said:
“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. 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.”
By: Marc Thornham