ITV have won the rights to two of England’s group stage games at next summer’s European Championships, with BBC securing the Three Lions opening fixture versus Croatia.
Coverage of the tournament on British television will be split between the two broadcasting powerhouses. After meeting the Balkans on 14 June, England will face one of the countries in the playoffs, which could be neighbours Scotland, as well as Israel, Norway and Serbia. Gareth Southgate and his recruits finish the pools with a game against Czech Republic.
All three of their group matches will take place at Wembley. However, England could play in a number of different cities should they make the last-16, with Bilbao, Dublin, Glasgow and Budapest amongst the possible locations for their first game of the knockout stages.
The Sun report that the BBC have the rights for Wales’ opening group match, which is a clash with Switzerland. They will also present coverage of the following fixture as Ryan Giggs’ men take on Turkey in Azerbaijan.
If the Welsh make it to the round-of-16, their game will again be shown by BBC. The same is true of England, whilst ITV have first pick for the semis. The broadcasters will then share the rights for the final on 12 July.
Discussing the news, ITV’s director of sport Niall Sloane stated: “[We] will be bringing to viewers comprehensive live coverage of some of the biggest matches in what promises to be a special tournament.
“Euro 2020 looks set to dominate next summer with so many matches being played in Britain and Ireland and the involvement of England, Wales and hopefully more home nations.
“Our team is looking forward to offering viewers all the action and expert insight across TV, online and social media to make the most of what promises to be a memorable tournament.”
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