BBC or ITV? Inside how World Cup broadcast picks are made

With so many World Cup matches to watch it can be hard to keep up with the schedule and whether a game is on the BBC or ITV.

You might also have wondered how broadcasters agree which matches they get to show in the first place.

It's not an easy process for TV executives tasked with the job of working this out.

In the UK, the BBC and ITV have screened football's global showpiece together since 1966. Two years ago they agreed a deal to share live coverage again in 2026 and 2030, ensuring the World Cup remained on free-to-air television.

The two broadcasters split matches between them, including a shared final.

But how is it decided who shows which matches? How does the process work?

Executive producer Phil Bigwood knows exactly how things work behind the scenes. He's been part of the BBC's World Cup team for more than 20 years.

The process - or 'split' as Bigwood calls it is simple: The BBC and ITV take it in turns to have the first pick and rotate it between tournaments - it's the same with the Euros.

Back in December - when the World Cup draw was made - it was the BBC's turn to pick first. Both the BBC and ITV will broadcast the final, leaving 103 matches left to choose from.

Once the BBC had picked their first match, ITV then chose theirs, and it went back and forth until all the matches had been allocated.

"We typically end up with an even split with the priority games like England, Scotland and the knockout matches having the highest value," Bigwood said in December.

"For this World Cup there are 91 picks in total and we get around 10-15 minutes to make each one - although we don't always need that long.

"For the Euros in Berlin last year it took a few hours to get through all the picks, but this World Cup took a fair bit longer. There's normally quite a lot of coffee drunk!"

Before the split takes place, both sides have to do their homework.

Following the draw broadcasters find out when and where the matches will be. The job then is to come up with a plan for which games take priority.

"We have a couple of days of conversations - at least - around what we would like to do and which way we might want to go," Bigwood says.

"In the BBC's case we've got other scheduling like Wimbledon to take into account - for ITV they've got their commercial considerations and own programming to work around. You need to weigh all this up as part of your strategy.

"You plot through the value of each match and the potential day-by-day schedule. No broadcaster wants to end up in a situation where you have four or more live games on one day."

There's lots to consider - covering matches involving the home nations is paramount and predicting who might face each other in the knockout stages is also key.

Kick-off times need to be taken into account too. This tournament across the USA, Canada and Mexico has 14 different kick-off times, which adds an extra layer of complication.

None of this is a perfect science.

"You have to weigh up how far you think a team might progress," Bigwood adds. "If there's a big team in England or Scotland's group - do you go with that group game or gamble on a knockout match which might not happen? That's always the big conundrum...

"Once we've all agreed on what pick we want for the BBC we'll then phone ITV and confirm it, they then have the next pick. We're not in the same room and we obviously never know which way they're going to go."

The plan both sides have in place has to be constantly tweaked - after all ITV might well pick one of the matches the BBC had their eyes on, and vice versa.

Alongside the group games, both sides need to choose which picks they will have from the knockout rounds during the tournament. These will be some of the best games - but no-one yet knows what those matches will be.

"This is where a bit of guesswork comes in," says Bigwood.

"At Euro 2016 we anticipated that England could face France in a blockbuster quarter-final. But England lost to Iceland in the last 16 so we didn't get the game we wanted."

The broadcasters also have to balance up a time slot with the appeal of a match, particularly at this World Cup.

"For example, at the Brazil World Cup there was one early-hours game that was due to be played in Manaus up in the Amazon," Bigwood says.

"We joked that it was going to be the last pick because we thought nobody would want that game.

"But it ended up being England v Italy and was one of the top BBC picks - we thought it'd be the one game we were all trying to avoid!"

With so many variables and unknowns a lot of the TV scheduling comes down to luck.

"If it goes to a penalty shootout then your whole strategy is resting in the hands of a few players and their ability from 12 yards.

"You're just hoping your gambles pay off. But there's clearly absolutely nothing you can do to control those knockout games. We'll always have things that don't work in our favour and other results that do.

"Let's be honest, we could all sit here and try to predict every result through to the final but nobody's going to get them all right are they?"

Despite the competition and the battle for ratings, do both sides get on? Are there any disagreements or heated exchanges during the split?

"We've known the guys at ITV for many years. Some of them used to work at the BBC and we're friends with a lot of them - it's a partnership," Bigwood says.

"Both sides know what their priority games will be. We'll sometimes throw each other a curveball with a pick, but it never gets heated or anything like that.

"Obviously it's for the benefit of everyone that both parties come away and are happy with what they've got."

The split always takes place as close as possible to the draw, normally a few days afterwards - this is important so that broadcasters can start on the complicated logistics of covering so many games.

"Before the split has happened we attend a world broadcaster meeting - that's when Fifa update everybody on the production plans, confirmed kick off times, venues, etc.

"We get told everything from how visas and customs will work to where camera positions will be.

"Our BBC team then has to submit every booking that is required for all the games shortly after the ITV match split is completed and ratified in mid-December.

"That includes every camera position, every lines feed and even every car park pass we'll need for all matches - literally everything - it's quite a lively time!

"Then there are hotel bookings, flights and so on. This is undoubtedly the most difficult bit of the process."

This article was originally published in December 2025.