BBC calls time on Football Focus
April 24, 2026
By Nik Roseveare
BBC Sport has announced that its long-running Football Focus programme will be axed end of the current football season.
The programme has been a staple of the BBC’s football coverage since 1974, providing football fans with interviews, analysis and stories from across the game ahead of the weekend’s fixtures. But the BBC said that changing audience behaviours mean fans are now increasingly consuming football content in different ways – such as through digital platforms and on-demand viewing – and thus “it is appropriate to respond to this as difficult decisions are made around how the licence fee is spent”.
BBC Sport said it is adapting how it brings football coverage to the widest audiences across television, radio, online and social platforms.
Football Focus is currently fronted by Alex Scott, who will remain at the heart of BBC Sport’s football coverage and biggest sporting moments. She will play a key role across this year’s FIFA World Cup, the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup and BBC Sport’s ongoing coverage of the Women’s Super League. She will also once again serve as one of this year’s hosts of the BBC Sport Personality of the Year Awards.
Alex Kay-Jelski, Director of BBC Sport, commented: “Football Focus has been a hugely important programme in the history of BBC Sport and has played a key role in telling the stories of the game for generations of viewers. This decision was made before last week’s wider BBC savings announcement, reflecting the continued shift in how audiences engage with football and our commitment to evolving how we deliver content to reach fans wherever they are. Alex Scott is one of our finest presenters, is hugely popular across the men and women’s game and is a big part of our present and future. She will remain at the heart of our sports output across both the Men’s World Cup this year and the Women’s World Cup in 2027, as well as continuing her lead role on the Women’s Super League and BBC Sport Personality of the Year. We are also working on a very exciting new project with her – more to come on that soon”.
From next season, The Football Interview will move to Saturdays at 12.45pm on BBC One, where some of the biggest names in the game open up about what makes them tick.
Final Score with Jason Mohammad will start earlier on BBC One at 3.45pm, bringing fans all the goals and key moments as reporters and a team of expert analysts break down the afternoon’s matches. Both programmes will also be available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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