Rugby World Cup with ITV

ITV have the broadcasting rights for both 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cups. Hands up who is happy with this decision?

Ok, now hands up who not from England is happy with the decision. I should imagine that’s a big zero. Because whilst England will get plenty of coverage we will be left, yet again, pondering how Wales vs South Africa will effect England’s chances of winning the World Cup.

ITV’s coverage has been traditionally awful, so I assume that the tendering process included no reference to quality and everything to do with price.

Think for a moment about the commentators. John Taylor may have been a class act in a Welsh shirt but his commentary has been some of the least exciting stuff I have ever been sent to sleep to – and I include my old Physics lessons in that.

Going by previous occasions we can assume that ITV will again borrow some ‘talent’ from Sky. Which means we again have to suffer through Will Greenwood trying to be poetic whilst he verbally ejaculates over anything in an England shirt. Stuart Barnes shall be hyping up anything and everything that England do (with brief moments of how England might counter something another country does).

We shall certainly have to sit through some 2003 montages, and a shed load of references in a game that has nothing to do with England. I may even sit down and make a World Cup drinking bingo (in fact I have done – see this great drinking game) – doing shots for each time certain phrases are mentioned in non-England related games. Although I will have to leave out the name ‘Wilkinson’ or we will all be in a drunken stupor before kick off.

Worse there is the possibility that the permanently smug Adrian Chiles will be asked to present some of it. I do hope this is not the case, he can barely manage football never mind rugby.

Those with memories of Formula 1 will remember how ITV can butcher a sport. Those with memories of any World Cup will know how we will have to sit through masses of adverts in between biased and incomprehensible analysis before, during and after the game.

I don’t know if you have noticed but I am really not a fan of ITV getting the World Cup.

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