The headquarters of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) are pictured in London on March 11, 2023. (Photo by Susannah Ireland / AFP)
Match of the Day 2 on BBC is likely to be without host Mark Chapman with the programme expected to have a scaled-down format.
The format is expected to be similar to Saturday night’s Match of the Day with no pundits, presenters, or commentary.
Match of the Day was scaled down following the axing of lead presenter Gary Lineker was axed from the broadcast over a recent tweet that saw him compare the United Kingdom Government’s planned policy over asylum seekers to ‘1930s Germany’.
His removal from the show was followed by co-hosts and commentators refusing to appear on Saturday’s football highlights show.
Radio commentators and even some Premier League managers and players boycotted interviews with the organisation, Mail Online reports.
Uncertainty over Match of the Day 2’s format increased when presenter Mark Chapman stood down from his BBC radio duties on Saturday.
Jermain Defoe also announced he had pulled out of his punditry role on the programme.
“It’s always such a privilege to work with BBC MOTD,” the former England striker tweeted.
“But tomorrow I have taken the decision to stand down from my punditry duties.”
MOTD lasted just 20 minutes on Saturday following a day of chaos for the BBC, which left the broadcaster having to cancel most of its football coverage.
It was rebranded as ‘Premier League Highlights’ during its broadcast on Saturday evening.
Mail Online gathered that the programme aired only short highlight clips of the day’s matches. Between each clip, a graphic appeared displaying which teams were playing, while the usual match commentary was replaced with the sound of the crowd inside each stadium.
