FIFA has estimated nearly six billion people will interact with the World Cup over the course of the tournament, and is projected to generate three billion US dollars in revenue.
Naturally, with the size of the spectacle comes an intense competition amongst broadcasters to grab as many eyeballs as possible. While the hosts USA’s efforts are being led by Fox Sports, the British as usual will tune in to ITV Sports and the BBC.
As far as the cast of experts is concerned, it is pretty straightforward to pick out ITV as the frontrunners. Their coverage is set to be headlined by the likes of Roy Keane, Ian Wright, and Gary Neville, with guaranteed appearances from Ange Postecoglou, Juan Mata, Patrick Viera, and Emma Hayes.
The rest of the football panel includes Karen Carney, Duncan Ferguson, Bradley Wright-Phillips, and Jobi McAnuff, while Christina Ankel is set to serve as the Referee Analyst to break down big calls made during games.
Gabriel Clarke and Connie McLaughlin will make up ITV’s on-field presence. Commentary will be led by Sam Matterface and Jon Champion, alongside the likes of Lee Dixon and Andros Townsend.
The broadcasters will not be short on entertainment either. They’ve contracted Adam Richman to host a segment alongside Semra Hunter, with the television celebrity wildly popular in the USA for being the face of the ‘Man v Food’ show. During the course of the tournament, a slew of famous names from the world of football and otherwise are expected to make an appearance.
And if such a star-studded line-up wasn’t already enough to win the broadcasters race, ITV’s latest showcase has simply blown their rivals out of the water.
Fair play ITV, that studio is nuts 🤯 pic.twitter.com/ptJOqjN9SG
— CFCDaily (@CFCDaily) June 10, 2026
Premiering their coverage for the tournament ahead of the Mexico-South Africa curtain raiser on June 11 , ITV Sports revealed a breathtaking location at Panorama Brooklyn Studios that left audiences in awe. The set featured a sprawling wooden deck with a massive oval table at the centre surrounded by lounge chairs for the panelist.
However, what caught the eye was the sky behind them, dominated by the view of towering skyscrapers in downtown Manhattan. Iconic landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty and the World Trade Center were instantly recognizable, as was a panoramic view of the Brooklyn Bridge behind a secondary studio which they cut to on several occasions.
Host Mark Pougatch fittingly described the outdoor setting as their “New York loft apartment”. He stacked on the grandeur by affirming viewers what they saw was real, even if it looked AI-generated. Viewers were quick to draw comparisons with the relatively modest coverage of their competitors BBC, who’ve to contend with a studio back home at Salford in England.
As ITV unveil there super-snazzy Brooklyn studio for the World Cup I do feel a bit for the BBC who will broadcasting games back in Salford.
— Dan Walker (@mrdanwalker) June 11, 2026
The location will have cost ITV a fortune and the BBC can’t win… if they go then there is criticism every day about the cost and, if they… pic.twitter.com/oEUQ3DpMok
Over recent years, ITV have made a habit of serving the best-in-class broadcast in the British isles, but this time they might’ve simply outdone themselves.
