Match of the Day 2 to move to BBC1 because of number of Sunday games

Increase in Premier League matches prompts schedule change for BBC2's football highlights show at the start of the season

by Josh Halliday 10 months ago

The BBC's Match of the Day 2 is to be broadcast on BBC1 because of the increased number of Premier League games played on a Sunday, the corporation has said.

The Premier League highlights programme, which is fronted by Colin Murray, will move from BBC2 for the start of the upcoming season.

Match of the Day 2 will now air on BBC1 at 10.25pm on a Sunday. Gary Lineker's Match of the Day will continue to be broadcast in its regular Saturday evening slot on BBC1.

Danny Cohen, the controller of BBC1, said: "As a huge fan of Match Of The Day I'm thrilled that MOTD2 is moving to a regular home on BBC1. The audience response to the BBC's coverage of Euro 2012 has been fantastic, meaning that this is the perfect moment to make this move."

Match of the Day 2 features regularly in BBC2's top 30 most-viewed programmes, according to industry figures compiled by the Broadcasters' Audience Research Board (Barb).

Towards the climactic end of the last Premier League season, Match of the Day 2 attracted between 1.5 million and 2.5 million viewers in its 10pm slot, compared with about 2.5 million viewers for The Apprentice – You're Fired in the Wednesday 10pm slot and 1.8 million for Mastermind in the Friday 8pm slot.

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