Key Takeaways
- Football Focus will broadcast for the last time in May, ending 52 years on air.
- Linear TV ratings have fallen since 2018 as fans move to phones and apps for match build-up.
- Alex Scott hosts the final series; she stays with the broadcaster for World Cups and a new project.
The longest-running weekend football magazine show in Britain will sign off this spring. Football Focus, which first hit screens in 1974, will not return next season, the public broadcaster confirmed on Tuesday.
Executives say the traditional one-hour slot at 12:00 on Saturdays no longer fits modern habits. Supporters now scroll short videos, podcasts and club channels on the morning of a match, cutting average live audiences by almost half since 2018.
In place of the studio programme, a new 15-minute interview segment called “The Football Interview” will air at 12:45, followed by an earlier start for rolling scores service “Final Score” at 15:45. Both will remain on the same channel.
The decision is part of a wider shift toward online formats. Staff will produce extra YouTube shows, TikTok clips and iPlayer exclusives aimed at younger viewers across Africa and the UK.
Former Arsenal defender Alex Scott will present the last batch of episodes. She took over in 2019 after frontmen such as Bob Wilson, Gary Lineker and Dan Walker. Scott thanked the crew and promised “bigger projects” with the network, including the 2026 men’s World Cup and 2027 women’s edition.
Bob Wilson, who anchored the first branded series, called the news “the end of an era” but backed the need to “meet fans where they are now.”
The final episode, due on 24 May, will look back at classic moments and feature messages from past guests like Bukayo Saka, Emma Hayes and Bernardo Silva.
