Staff

ITV will resume horse racing coverage “with three days of top class” races from Friday 5 to Sunday 7 June presented by Ed Chamberlin, Francesca Cumani and Jason Weaver. 

The team will be based at home, as will the direction and production team of the show, using innovative technology and adhering to social distancing guidelines. Richard Hoiles will be based off site in a commentary booth. 

The Opening Show will also return on Saturday 6 June on ITV4 9.30-10.30am, presented from home by Oli Bell and joined by Matt Chapman, Jason Weaver and Richard Hoiles.

Friday 5 June, on ITV4 1.30-4pm will show four races from Newmarket, including the Group 1 Coronation Cup, revised from Epsom, and three from Lingfield Park, including the Oaks and Derby Trials.  

Saturday 6 June on ITV, 1.30-4pm will show four races from Newmarket, including the first Classic of the season, the Qipco 2000 Guineas, and three from Newcastle, including the Sagaro Stakes.

Sunday 7 June, on ITV 1.30-4pm will show four races from Newmarket, including the Qipco 1000 Guineas, and three from Haydock Park, including the Brigadier Gerard Stakes, re-routed from Sandown.

Full schedule listed below.

ITV Racing was last broadcast on ITV4 on Saturday 21 March from Thurles in Ireland.  The Virtual Grand National, shown on ITV on Saturday 4 April was watched by 4.8 million people.  

Friday 5 June, ITV4, 1.30-4pm

Newmarket

1.50 The Race Five Handicap Stakes

2.25 The Abernant Stakes (Group 3)

3.00 The Paradise Stakes (Listed)

3.35 The Coronation Cup Stakes (Group 1)

Lingfield Park

2.05 The East Grinstead Handicap Stakes

2.40 The Oaks Trial Fillies’ Stakes (Listed)

3.15 The Derby Trial Stakes (Listed)

Saturday 6 June, ITV, 1.30-4pm

Newmarket

1.50 The Palace House Stakes (Group 3)

2.25 The Dahlia Fillies’ Stakes (Group 2)

3.00 The Newmarket Stakes (Listed)

3.35 The Qipco 2000 Guineas Stakes (Group 1)

Newcastle

2.05 The Washington Handicap Stakes

2.40 The Sagaro Stakes (Group 3)

3.15 The New Harrington Handicap Stakes

Sunday 7 June, ITV, 1.30-4pm

Newmarket

1.50 The Buckhounds Stakes (Listed)

2.25 The Barrow Handicap Stakes

3.00 The Ebf Pretty Polly Fillies’ Stakes (Listed)

3.35 The Qipco 2000 Guineas Stakes (Group 1)

Haydock Park

2.05 The Pinnacle Stakes (Group 3)

2.40 The Brigadier Gerard Stakes (Group 3)

3.15 The Spring Trophy Stakes (Listed)

Four Premier League games are to be shown for free on BBC Sport when the league returns next month, marking the contest’s first airing on the BBC channels since launching in 1992.

Director of BBC Sport, Barbara Slater, said: “This opportunity creates an historic moment for the BBC and our audiences. At a time when sports fans across the country are in need of lift, this is very welcome news. 

“We are delighted and excited to have the chance to show live Premier League games on the BBC. 

“This will offer audiences, who haven’t had the opportunity in the past, live, free to air access to the best football league in the world, as the BBC continues to keep the country entertained during these unprecedented times.”

Sky will also be showing 25 games free to air on Freeview channel, Pick.

The games will be simulcast on Sky Sports which will also bring subscribers an additional 39 exclusive games.

CEO Stephen van Rooyen said: “The return of live sport is a big moment for the country, and we want the nation to join us. Sky has partnered with the Premier League and its clubs for nearly thirty years, and the strength of our partnership has never been more important.

“Our commitment to showing 25 matches ‘free to air’ for the first time in the history of Sky Sports recognises the unique times we are in, and our desire to play our part.”

A further 20 games will be shown by BT Sport which said it was “delighted to see the provisional plan to restart the Premier League next month.”

Scheduled live sport returns to Eurosport this weekend with the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship set to be screened on Eurosport 1 and Eurosport Player in the UK and France.

Live and exclusive coverage of round one of the MotoAmerica Superbike Championship from Road America, Wisconsin starts on Saturday evening at 9pm CEST / 8pm BST with the Supersport race and resumes the following day at 8pm CEST / 7pm BST.

Andrew Georgiou, President, Eurosport and Global Sports Rights & Sports Marketing Solutions, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to bring world-class live sport back to Eurosport, starting this weekend in the United Kingdom and France with the MotoAmerica Series. 

“We have undisputed strength in motor sports, driven by both our Eurosport Events portfolio as well as Eurosport’s partnership with some of the biggest series in motorsport.

“There is no better place to showcase and grow a sport than Discovery’s global portfolio of channels, platforms and brands. 

“We see great potential in partnering with the championship in more than 50 markets across Europe to harness the scale of Eurosport’s platforms to maximise reach and engagement around the series.”

MotoAmerica President and three-time 500cc World Champion Wayne Rainey, said: “We have a lot of fans in Europe so it’s great that they will be able to watch the MotoAmerica Series this season on Eurosport.

“This is a big deal for our series to have Eurosport involved. They are experts in delivering fan engagement at scale and will really grow fan base in Europe. 

“We’re looking forward to an exciting start to our championship at Road America this weekend and having Eurosport as our overseas television partner makes it even better.”

NFL fans had some unexpected good news back in February when the league announced a “multi-year” deal with 2K Games for the development of “multiple” new video games based on the league.

The deal, which marked 2K’s first involvement with NFL since the release of ESPN NFL 2K5 in 2004, took a lot of gamers and fans by surprise and also ended EA Games’ 16 year stint as the sole developer of NFL titles.

EA was quick to release a statement confirming that it remained “the exclusive publisher of NFL simulation games” and clarifying that its agreement with the sport had always allowed for other studios to develop non-simulation games. 

That NFL has taken up this option should come as no surprise – licensing sports brands is big business. 

Fans have long enjoyed recreating their favourite sports at home and while many unlicensed sports related games enjoy significant success, having the likeness of a player, an official team logo or the name of a real-world tournament or league on the box is a guaranteed way to grab consumer attention and shift units.

These sales mean cash not just for games makers, but also the owner of the Intellectual Property being used, who can often expect an upfront sum and ongoing royalties. 

Little wonder then that officially licensed games are available across all formats.

EA’s Sports division has built up a stable of consistently successful console, PC and mobile games in partnership with brands such as UFC, NBA and NFL while 2K has enjoyed great success with its WWE franchise.  

Just as NFL has opted to expand beyond a single developer, NBA recently announced a mobile-centric deal with Nifty Games which will sit alongside its EA tie-up.

It’s not just fast and furious sports that can boast an official video game, cricket fans have the option of Big Ant’s Cricket 19 game which includes fully licensed line-ups from Australia, Australia Women, England and England Women, plus venues Edgbaston, Lord’s, Headingley, Old Trafford, and The Oval.

Away from the world of video games, fans can up the ante by playing officially licensed iGames such as The Grand National detailed by Casino Hawks. The makers of traditional board and table-top games also use licensed branding to draw sales, such as this Subbuteo UEFA Champions League Playset, a 2018 FIFA World Cup Monopoly edition or – for the really retro feel – this Manchester City Top Trumps set.

But no matter what form the game takes, the makers are all seeking the same thing – harnessing a familiar player photo, a well-known logo or the publicity surrounding a major sporting even to draw the eye in an increasingly crowded and competitive market where potential buyers have more options than ever.

ITV has revealed the trailer for its full coverage of Euro 96, which starts on May 11 on ITV4 and on the ITV Hub streaming service. 

With Euro 2020 postponed for twelve months, ITV Hub has raided the archives to provide football fans with a slice of sports nostalgia as the platform unearths every match from 1996’s tournament, hosted in England, for Euro 96 Relived.

Airing from May 11, ITV Hub takes a trip down sporting memory lane and will transmit all 31 games from one of the most closely contested tournaments in recent history.

In addition, ITV4 will also show the five games that featured the England football team in some of their most memorable head to heads, as well as the final between Germany and the Czech Republic.

During Euro 96 Relived, football fans will be able to relive the drama from the epic Summer of ’96, during which host nation England fought to bring the trophy back home, with a squad made up of sporting legends Paul Gascoigne, Alan Shearer, David Seaman, Stuart Pearce and Teddy Sheringham.

1996 was the last time England reached the semi-finals of the European Championships and remains fondly remembered thanks to Baddiel and Skinner and The Lightning Seeds’ chart-topping anthem Three Lions (Football’s Coming Home), which soundtracks the television version of ITV’s new trailer, which has been produced by ITV Creative.

In the absence of live football, the lead-in to the tournament features a series of classic big matches returning to ITV’s main channel from Saturday May 2, including the 1987 FA Cup final, with Coventry City taking on Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal v Man United in the 1979 FA Cup final, the 1989 Liverpool v Arsenal title decider, England v Cameroon in the 1990 World Cup, and England’s game against Colombia in the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Ed Ross, ITV’s Marketing Controller, said: “This trailer should give fans a taste of the atmosphere surrounding one of this country’s all-time great sporting events, Euro 96. 

“With no football to look forward to in the near future, we’re aiming to bring back some of the fun, anticipation and celebration of that sunny summer for fans to enjoy at home.”