GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - APRIL 25: BBC Sport Scotland microphone pictured ahead of a William Hill Championship match between Partick Thistle and Falkirk at Wyre Stadium at Firhill, on April 25, 2025, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Craig Foy/SNS Group via Getty Images)
BBC Scotland pundits look unlikely to get a summer jolly to the World Cup Finals.
Scotland have qualified for the first time in 28 years but it looks like Tom English, Steven Thompson, Alasdair Lamont, Billy Dodds and Neil McCann will be watching the action from a studio in Glasgow!
Normally the BBC would be sending plane loads of presenters, pundits and technicians to the World Cup Finals but in the current climate budgets have to be justified.
There is no justification for sending English, Thompson and McCann across the Atlantic to discuss John Souttar and Connor Barron when the same content can be created from Pacific Quay.
The likelihood of missing out on a three or four week jolly across the USA, Canada and Mexico will be devastating for the lads on Sportsound.
Next week a full squad of experts will be in Budapest for the Europa League dead rubber against Ferencvaros. Next month the scene switches to Porto
The Daily Mail reports:
The BBC is not planning to send television pundits to North America for the World Cup until the quarter-final stage, Daily Mail Sport understands.
It can also be disclosed that the broadcaster – unlike ITV – does not intend to have its own studio at the tournament, in a move that has emboldened their rivals and may well cost them the services of some of football’s most high-profile names.
Many games will be covered remotely from the BBC’s Salford base, with the likes of Wayne Rooney due to provide colour on matches being played thousands of miles away.
While TV pundits will remain at Salford until the latter stages, commentators will be in the US for matches involving home nations and high-profile games. Commentary from other matches will be provided from the Corporation’s MediaCity base.
The BBC declined to comment other than to say that World Cup plans are yet to be finalised. Sources believe the quarter-finals are the plan, although some have raised the prospect of no travelling TV pundits until the semi-finals.
The cost of covering the tournament across three countries, and one which features 48 nations instead of 32, was thought to have been deemed unpalatable.
Scotland will find out later today the venues for their matches against Brazil, Morocco and Haiti.
There are two options for media firms to cover the World Cup.
They can spend a fortune on travel and accommodation to pick up a few minor stories or assess the information online and create content from that.
Whether English, Lamont or Cammy Bell are in Glasgow or New Jersey to produce dull, predictable content of Scotland matches doesn’t matter.
By default BBC Scotland have screened Scotland’s qualifying matches, featuring pundits such as Peter Lovenkrands to provide diversity.
Saving on travel costs and basing all content in Glasgow will allow the BBC to go over the top in their coverage.
Scotland’s Champion – the daily Record – deemed that the World Cup draw was not a big enough sporting event and news story to send any of it’s plethora of ‘ sport ‘ scoops to cover ..live in person ! It will of course continue it’s policy of 2 scoops sent to cover theRangers games domestically and crucially in Europe home and away where the tribute act is the laughing stock on the world stage of football . It sounds like the financial situation has reached austerity levels ..on certain choices from management. My last count was 11 ‘ sport ‘ scoops employed by the Record …a football team of scoop reporters ! All other ‘ news desks ‘ at the rag must be so happy at the employment levels of sport while their guys are down to the bare minimum of staff …funny that intit ?
Pat Bonnar ( The Humble Interlectual Should Go)
Probably better watching on BBC England