Tonight's Match of the Day thrown into turmoil as BBC don't have rights to global commentary feed

The chaos surrounding Saturday night's Match of the Day continues, with the latest being that the BBC do not have the rights for global commentary.

After Gary Lineker was told to stake a step back from hosting duties until an agreement is reached over his social media activity, the show has been thrown into complete and utter disarray.

The show is still going ahead but without pundits or a presenter after Ian Wright and Alan Shearer both announced they would not be appearing.

In addition, BBC regular commentators like Steve Wilson and Conor McNamara also joined in on the boycott - leading to the expectation that commentary for the world feed would be utilised instead.

However, David Ornstein from The Athletic is reporting that the organisation do not have the rights for the necessary global commentary.

As a result, given there will be no studio presentation, the programme is to be a 20-minute glorified highlights show without in-game commentary or any analysis.

There will not even be any post-match interviews with Premier League players or managers, with it emerging that the 12 clubs in action were told they would not receive requests from the BBC in what has been deemed a "face-saving exercise".

Some were thinking of boycotting anyway and had the support from the union, the PFA.

The unprecedented format could have a huge bearing on viewing figures. Football Focus and Final Score, the BBC's two other flagship football programmes, were pulled from the air after Alex Scott and Jason Mohammad stood in solidarity with Lineker.

Similar happened on BBC Radio 5 Live, where Mark Chapman and Colin Murray refused to host and other pundits said they were not fulfilling their duties.

The BBC have said their sporting programming will be "limited" and stressed they are "working hard to resolve the situation".

But they will have to work fast as the channel is scheduled to broadcast two live FA Cup quarter-final games next weekend.

Featured Image Credit: BBC

Topics: Match Of The Day, Gary Lineker, Ian Wright, Alan Shearer

Josh Lawless

Josh is a sports journalist who specialises in football and wrestling. He has been published by Curzon Ashton FC, Late Tackle, Manchester City FC, The Mirror, Read Man City and Manchester Evening News. He provides coverage of professional wrestling and has interviewed some of the biggest names in the field - including the first UK interview with The Hardy Boyz after their return to WWE. He has never sported a pair of Lonsdale Slip-ons, contrary to reports.

@joshlawless_