Chelsea vs Barcelona in the Women’s Champions League was shown live on BBC Two and iPlayer on Thursday night, but the broadcaster was forced to apologise to viewers after a fault
The BBC was forced to apologise to viewers after their coverage of Chelsea vs Barcelona in the Women’s Champions League cut out. The Blues were hosting the European giants at Stamford Bridge on Thursday night when a power cut struck.
The two sides were midway through the first half when the coverage cut out. Viewers on BBC Two and iPlayer were shown a message which read: “We are sorry for the break in this programme and are trying to correct the fault.”
Former Chelsea and England star Fran Kirby said on BBC Radio 5 Live: “As a player it is a bit strange to see a game stopped because the cameras are not working.
“Of course we want people to enjoy it and watch it from home but ultimately the players are on the pitch and you have to let the game go. The players won’t want to be standing around on a cold night like this.”
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Disney+ were showing the game as well and their coverage was similarly affected. Chelsea women tweeted: “Play has been stopped temporarily due to a technical fault.”
In the end, viewers didn’t miss any action because referee Tess Olofsson was forced to halt play because her communication equipment had also cut out. Journalists inside the stadium reported that their replay screens inside the press box had also gone black.
The match was tied at 1-1 when the enforced break came. Ellie Carpenter put Chelsea ahead with a powerful finish from the edge of the box following a pass from Aggie Beever-Jones. Barcelona equalised through Ewa Pajor to go into the half-time level following nine minutes of added time.
It took around seven minutes for play to resume after players had received instructions from their head coaches. At half-time, the microphones of BBC pundits Nikita Parris and Anita Asante were intermittent as they gave their thoughts pitchside.
Chelsea Women often host big Champions League matches at Stamford Bridge – the home of their men’s side – but usually play at Kingsmeadow in Kingston. Chelsea are in the process of trying to build a new stadium to either replace Stamford Bridge or expand their home.
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