Sky Sports AXE popular long-running programme loved by Jurgen Klopp leaving staff ‘bewildered by the direction'
SKY SPORTS have reportedly left staff 'bewildered' after axing a popular long-running programme which counted Jurgen Klopp among its fans.
The Football Show was a weekly item taking place each Monday delivering an extensive look at the most recent matches.
2
Hosted by Rob Wotton, it saw pundits Stephen Warnock and Sue Smith also give their thoughts on results, controversies and stand-out player performances.
Former Liverpool manager Klopp was known to be a big fan, especially of ex-official Dermot Gallagher who would join for a section called 'Ref Watch'.
However, the Mail claims The Football Show has now been axed in a move that has caused confusion and 'dismay' among staff.
It's believed chiefs are hoping to attract a younger audience, with the broadcaster already doing away with various old-school elements in favour of YouTubers and influencers.
Last year saw the end of the popular Fantasy Football League show after two years.
But workers are thought to be 'bewildered' by the latest item to fall victim, with Sky Sports currently undergoing a 'restructure' that is seeing seven reporters and presenters leave.
However, insiders told The Mail that 'the changes are aimed at making them more agile and able to concentrate on breaking news stories across platforms.'
While Gallagher's Ref Watch will remain in a new format elsewhere.
The end of The Football Show comes after Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville was banned from attending Nottingham Forest's 1-0 defeat to Chelsea.
The former Manchester United star had been selected by Sky to commentate on the crunch final day battle.
Roy Keane smirks live on TV before responding to Ruben Amorim's claim that the 'good days are coming' for Man Utd
Both sides were able to still qualify for the Champions League.
But Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis was still fuming over Neville's comments following his on-pitch clash with manager Nuno Espirito Santo after the disastrous 2-2 draw with Leicester.
And Sky were forced into a revised production change, with coverage eventually coming from their HQ in Osterley rather than at Forest itself.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
26 minutes ago
- Reuters
European game generated 38 bln euros in 2023-24 season, study shows
June 11 (Reuters) - Europe's soccer market grew by 8% in terms of revenue in the 2023-24 season to 38 billion euros ($43.46 billion) with England's Premier League generating the most, Deloitte said in a study published on Wednesday. In its Annual Review of Football Finance, Deloitte said the top five leagues -- Premier League, Bundesliga, LaLiga, Serie A and Ligue 1 -- generated 20.4 billion euros in revenue, an increase of 4%. Premier League clubs had the highest revenue of Europe's top leagues at 6.3 billion pounds ($8.50 billion). However, the traditional 'big six' clubs in England's top flight reported lower average revenue growth (3%) than other clubs that were in the Premier League in both the 2023-24 and 2022-23 seasons (11%). The study said the growth was largely driven by expansion of clubs' commercial offerings, which also led to the teams cumulatively generating more than two billion pounds in commercial revenue for the first time. "A focus on stadia development and diversification of commercial revenues led to growth across the European football market in the 2023-24 season," Tim Bridge, lead partner in Deloitte's Sports Business Group, said. "However, clubs and leagues cannot afford to take their eye off the ball as new challenges, including an evolving regulatory landscape and changing fan behaviours, arise. "The pressure is mounting for more clubs to drive additional revenue at the same time as managing rising costs. "More so than ever, leaders and owners must recognise the great responsibility they have of managing these businesses, capturing the historic essence of a football club while honouring its unrivalled role as a community asset for generations to come." Clubs in Europe's 'big five' leagues reported an aggregate operating profit (0.6 billion euros) for a second successive season, while the aggregate wages/revenue ratio fell from 66% to 64%. Clubs in England's Women's Super League (WSL) jointly generated revenue of 65 million pounds in the 2023-24 season, a 34% rise. Each WSL club had a double-digit increase in revenue, while all 12 clubs reported over one million pounds in revenue for the first time, with an average revenue of 5.4 million pounds. "Through developing more robust fan engagement strategies, strong commercial deals and securing central distributions, WSL clubs unlocked a new phase of growth," Deloitte Sports Business group's knowledge and insights lead Jennifer Haskel said. "Plus, as the reporting and attribution of commercial revenue remains inconsistent between clubs, we may be scratching the surface on the value now being generated by the women's game." ($1 = 0.7409 pounds) ($1 = 0.8743 euros)
Powys County Times
32 minutes ago
- Powys County Times
England ‘a work in progress' and have a lot of improving to do
Conor Gallagher accepts there is 'a lot of improvement' to make following a disappointing international break which saw England slip to a first defeat under Thomas Tuchel. England laboured to an unimpressive 1-0 victory over Andorra, a side ranked 173rd in the world, before slipping to their first defeat to African opposition three days later. Despite Harry Kane's early goal, the warning signs were there as Dean Henderson made five saves in the first period, but after Crystal Palace's Ismaila Sarr drew the visitors level, Habib Diarra and Cheikh Sabaly struck in the second half as boos rang around the City Ground. Gallagher, who was substituted in the second half, revealed Tuchel was calm in the dressing room after the game and is frustrated the next international window is three months away. The Atletico Madrid midfielder said: 'It was a really tough game, but we're still building. There's a lot to improve and there's a lot to work on and, as a team, we'll do that. 'I'm sure the manager and the coaching staff will look back at the game and see where we can be better because there is a lot of improvement to be made, but we're moving forward. 'He's calm. He's obviously disappointed and not happy, but he's calm with us. He knows we could be a lot better. 'It's a shame because we're away from each other for a few months now, whereas he would like to kind of fix the problem straight away, but he can't because that's how it is in international football. 'It's a work in progress and all the lads and the staff and the manager are all confident and happy with the progression. 'We have a lot to build on and improve and that's what we're going to try to do.' England were accused of not showing the right attitude in their narrow win over minnows Andorra. Asked whether they had shown the right application against Senegal, Gallagher replied: 'Yeah, definitely. I think we really wanted to win and I feel like we worked hard. 'I don't think we were great, if I'm being honest. But like I keep saying, it's a kind of work in progress and we need to improve moving forward and we're all happy to be doing that.' Gallagher's focus will now switch to the Club World Cup as he prepares to join up with his Atletico team-mates in the United States ahead of their first game against Champions League winners Paris St Germain at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. He said: 'It's really exciting and I'm really looking forward to it. It's going to be a great tournament. I think it will be really exciting when all the teams are actually there and the tournament starts. 'You want to always play against the best players and the midfielders. Obviously (PSG) had an unbelievable season, so you want to be playing against these guys. We know how hard it will be, but it's good for us and it's exciting.'
Glasgow Times
32 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
England ‘a work in progress' and have a lot of improving to do
England laboured to an unimpressive 1-0 victory over Andorra, a side ranked 173rd in the world, before slipping to their first defeat to African opposition three days later. Despite Harry Kane's early goal, the warning signs were there as Dean Henderson made five saves in the first period, but after Crystal Palace's Ismaila Sarr drew the visitors level, Habib Diarra and Cheikh Sabaly struck in the second half as boos rang around the City Ground. Gallagher, who was substituted in the second half, revealed Tuchel was calm in the dressing room after the game and is frustrated the next international window is three months away. England went 1-0 up before slipping to defeat at the City Ground (Mike Egerton/PA) The Atletico Madrid midfielder said: 'It was a really tough game, but we're still building. There's a lot to improve and there's a lot to work on and, as a team, we'll do that. 'I'm sure the manager and the coaching staff will look back at the game and see where we can be better because there is a lot of improvement to be made, but we're moving forward. 'He's calm. He's obviously disappointed and not happy, but he's calm with us. He knows we could be a lot better. 'It's a shame because we're away from each other for a few months now, whereas he would like to kind of fix the problem straight away, but he can't because that's how it is in international football. 'It's a work in progress and all the lads and the staff and the manager are all confident and happy with the progression. 'We have a lot to build on and improve and that's what we're going to try to do.' England were accused of not showing the right attitude in their narrow win over minnows Andorra. Asked whether they had shown the right application against Senegal, Gallagher replied: 'Yeah, definitely. I think we really wanted to win and I feel like we worked hard. 'I don't think we were great, if I'm being honest. But like I keep saying, it's a kind of work in progress and we need to improve moving forward and we're all happy to be doing that.' Gallagher was substituted in the second half (Mike Egerton/PA) Gallagher's focus will now switch to the Club World Cup as he prepares to join up with his Atletico team-mates in the United States ahead of their first game against Champions League winners Paris St Germain at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. He said: 'It's really exciting and I'm really looking forward to it. It's going to be a great tournament. I think it will be really exciting when all the teams are actually there and the tournament starts. 'You want to always play against the best players and the midfielders. Obviously (PSG) had an unbelievable season, so you want to be playing against these guys. We know how hard it will be, but it's good for us and it's exciting.'
