Some viewers were quick to complain about the BBC’s coverage of England’s latest World Cup match
BBC audiences expressed their frustration while watching England’s latest World Cup fixture.
Gabby Logan was back on screens on Tuesday (June 23) to host coverage of England’s Group L encounter with Ghana at Boston Stadium in the USA, with both nations competing in their second group stage match.
This marked only the second meeting between these teams and their first competitive clash. Their previous encounter was in March 2011, when former Sunderland forward Asamoah Gyan netted a stoppage-time equaliser to secure a 1-1 draw at Wembley Stadium.
Gabby was accompanied in the Salford studio by Joe Hart, Wayne Rooney and Micah Richards, while match commentary was provided by Guy Mowbray and Alan Shearer.
However, BBC audiences were swift to voice identical grievances about the broadcaster’s coverage. Numerous supporters expressed dissatisfaction with the “buffering” stream on iPlayer, as well as a live interview with British rapper Stormzy, reports the Mirror.
“England v Ghana on BBC iPlayer is buffering like crazy. It’s not just iPlayer, games buffer on ITVX too. Happens on the big fixtures, obvs,” one viewer posted on X (formerly Twitter), while another stated: “@BBCiPlayer not fit for purpose. Give me @itvx every time.”
A third posted: “@BBC what’s going on,” accompanied by a screenshot of the application failing to load.
Referencing Stormzy’s interview prior to the match, a fourth viewer remarked: “Dear BBC Sport. Football. Fans. Don’t. Care. About. Celebrities. At. The. World. Cup. Stop it,” with another contributing: “@BBCSport wasting licence payers cash yet again with a pointless interview with #Stormzy! Pathetic and nothing to do with football!”
Further grievances were lodged, with someone else stating: “BBC World Cup coverage is poor. S***,” while another posted: “Their coverage of this #worldcup has been beyond woeful.”
A third observed: “Congrats to ITV and the BBC for making the World Cup unwatchable.”
However, other viewers commended the BBC’s World Cup coverage, especially lead presenters Gabby and Kelly Cates.
“BBC coverage soo much better. Great female presenters with Gabby and Kelly. Miles better than ITV,” one individual posted, with another concurring: “Yeah the female presenters are excellent.”
The Three Lions will be aiming to progress to the knockout stages for the third successive World Cup. They have only been eliminated at the group stage once in their previous seven appearances in the finals.
This evening’s viewer complaints follow multiple interruptions to the BBC’s coverage of the football tournament.
Gabby Logan notably delivered a politics announcement during Monday’s (June 22) live transmission, just hours before coverage was pulled off air due to France and Iraq’s match being delayed. FIFA released a statement following alerts of a “severe thunderstorm approaching” the Philadelphia stadium.
Coverage of the FIFA World Cup 2026 is available to stream on BBC iPlayer and ITVX
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