BBC splits World Cup presenting across Cates Chapman Logan

The BBC is preparing to split its World Cup presenting duties across three hosts—Kelly Cates, Mark Chapman and Gabby Logan—while leaving one decision conspicuously unresolved: who will front the final.

According to The Guardian, BBC producers are planning to allocate an equal number of programmes to the trio, mirroring the corporation’s recent decision to divide Match of the Day presenting after Gary Lineker’s departure. Lineker ended his BBC career early last year after apologising for amplifying online material with antisemitic connotations, leaving the broadcaster to rebuild its flagship football presentation around a “no favourites” principle.

The World Cup’s scale raises the stakes for that internal balancing act. This summer’s tournament spans Canada, Mexico and the United States and has expanded from 32 teams to 48, increasing both the number of matches and the logistical burden. The Guardian reports that much of the BBC’s early presenting will be based in Salford as broadcasters manage travel and production costs across three countries. In parallel, ITV is sending its coverage to New York.

The BBC’s equal-share approach also collides with a more crowded attention market. Lineker will still be present in the World Cup media ecosystem via The Rest Is Football, a video podcast he co-founded that has struck a deal with Netflix to produce a daily edition from New York. BBC pundits Micah Richards and Alan Shearer are expected to appear on Lineker’s show, while the BBC has said licence fee money will not cover their expenses for work done for rival podcasts.

Inside the BBC, executives are pointing to early signs that its Match of the Day overhaul is working. The Guardian cites internal figures showing a roughly 10% fall in combined linear and iPlayer viewing for the Saturday and Sunday programmes—about 770,000 viewers—offset by a new rights agreement allowing highlights to be shown from 8pm. The number of digital BBC accounts accessing Match of the Day content in an average game week is up 21% year on year, including iPlayer and BBC Sport app clips.

That data points to what the BBC is now optimising for: not a single authoritative broadcast, but a portfolio of clips, highlights and personality-led formats competing with Sky, clubs and independent creators. In that environment, the presenter’s chair becomes less a job and more a risk-managed asset—shared, rotated and audited for “fairness”.

For the World Cup, the corporation can equalise the group-stage workload. It cannot equalise the final.