Gareth Bale Joins TNT Sports as Key Pundit for Premier League and Champions League Coverage
Gareth Bale has recently joined TNT Sports as a key pundit for the upcoming season. The former Real Madrid and Wales player will be part of the broadcaster's coverage of the Premier League and Champions League until 2025-26. Bale will be working alongside other pundits such as Peter Crouch, Joe Cole, Owen Hargreaves, Steve McManaman, Ally McCoist, and Karen Carney for the live coverage of Premier League matches on Saturday afternoons.
Bale's insightful analysis during Tottenham's Europa League final victory over Manchester United caught the attention of TNT executives, leading to his inclusion in their punditry team. He had previously contributed to the coverage of Liverpool's Champions League group game against Real Madrid. Bale's addition to the lineup comes as a replacement for Rio Ferdinand, who decided not to renew his contract after 12 years with TNT to focus on other ventures and family commitments.
TNT holds exclusive rights to broadcast 52 Premier League matches this season, including Saturday lunchtime kick-offs and midweek fixtures. The network aims to attract more viewers by spreading the midweek games across Tuesday to Thursday evenings with kick-off times at 7.30pm and 8.15pm. This season, Sky Sports will also broadcast a record number of live Premier League matches, starting with Liverpool's match against Bournemouth next Friday.
In addition to the Premier League, TNT has secured exclusive rights to broadcast all Champions League, Europa League, and Conference League matches, except for one Tuesday night Champions League game streamed by Amazon Prime. The broadcaster has also entered a new four-year deal for the FA Cup, with the upcoming season featuring the Community Shield match between Liverpool and Crystal Palace at Wembley. While TNT has exclusive rights to the FA Cup, the BBC will air 14 games, including quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the final.
TNT has not provided any official comments yet but is expected to announce its full punditry lineup for the season at the beginning of next week. Gareth Bale's addition to the TNT Sports team brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the broadcaster's coverage of top-tier football competitions. Fans can look forward to insightful analysis and commentary from Bale and the rest of the punditry team throughout the season.