Today, for a growing generation of sports fans, the Saturday-night ritual no longer involves the sofa, a TV remote and a familiar theme tune. Highlights are now consumed in fragments, clipped for YouTube, debated on TikTok and bellowed out by various podcasters and streamers.
The likes of Mark Goldbridge and Angry Ginge now shape the conversation for millions of younger viewers, who would rather digest sports content through the accessible, quick-hit medium of social media rather than traditional TV screens.
It has been well documented how considerably flagship football shows such as Match of the Day, Football Focus and Soccer AM have suffered over the past 15 years in terms of viewership – and this trajectory has been felt across sports broadcasting as a whole.
It was not long ago these programmes regularly pulled in vast audiences and set the agenda for how sport was discussed. At the heart of this golden age of sports television sat a string of talented presenters who brought authority, knowledge and personality to the craft.
Daily Mail Sport looks back at 10 presenters who dominated the space during the golden age of sports television – and caught up with where they are today.
During the golden age of sports TV, there was a string of talented presenters who brought authority, knowledge and personality to the craft (Jeff Stelling and Georgie Thompson above)
The likes of Mark Goldbridge (above) and Angry Ginge now shape the conversation for millions of younger viewers, who would rather digest sports content through social media
Georgie Thompson
A favourite on television during her decade-long tenure at Sky Sports, Georgie Thompson was a versatile presenter who covered many sports including football, tennis and Formula One.
After beginning her career at the broadcast giants in January 2001, she quickly became a familiar face hosting Sky Sports News and the Afternoon Report until December 2011, eventually stepping down to take on a full-time position presenting the network’s F1 coverage.
Thompson presented major events including the 2011 Wimbledon Championship, F1 race weekends, the Speedway World Cup and the America’s Cup, while also appearing as a regular panellist on A League of Their Own. In 2007, she was voted for by British men’s magazine FHM as the 93rd sexiest female in the world.
In 2014, the now 48-year-old presenter married four-time Olympic gold medalist and sailor Sir Ben Ainslie at Hampton Court and has since started a family, welcoming daughter Bellatrix in 2016 and son Fox in 2021.
Georgie Thompson became a favourite on TV during her decade-long tenure at Sky Sports
Chris Hollins
Throughout the 2000s and 2010s, Chris Hollins, 54, established himself as a versatile sports and entertainment presenter noted for his warm and engaging style.
Hollins began his media career in the mid-1990s with roles at Sky Sports, Channel One, GMTV, Meridian and Five before joining BBC News in 1999, where he fronted Grandstand and Football Focus. He also became well known for being the lead sports presenter on BBC Breakfast from October 2005 to March 2012, while also reporting on major events such as the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
After leaving BBC Breakfast in 2012, Hollins went on to present a variety of sports shows for BT Sport (now TNT Sport), including rugby, hockey, boxing and MotoGP.
Hollins, who remains active as a presenter at corporate events according to his talent agency, now lives with his wife Sarah and their two children in Oxfordshire. In June 2025, he told Hello magazine that he and his family are planning to move after living for almost a decade in the same property.
Chris Hollins was a sports and entertainment presenter noted for his warm and engaging style
Manish Bhasin
A regular fixture in British football broadcasting during the 2000s and early 2010s, Manish Bhasin began his career with BBC Radio Leicester before moving to ITV in 2001 to present sports programmes such as Soccer Sunday.
In February 2004, Bhasin joined BBC Sport’s Football Focus to become the youngest regular host of a weekly football preview show at just 27. He went on to present multiple major cricket tournaments, including the 2007 and 2011 World Cups, while continuing to carry out his football role at the BBC.
The passionate Leicester City supporter became synonymous with BBC One’s The Football League Show, a highlights programme with a similar format to Match of the Day, after becoming its main presenter from 2009 to 2015.
This time last year, while the BBC were searching for a MOTD presenter to replace Gary Linker, several fans called for Bhasin to step in – still remembering his calm and professional presence on The Football League Show a decade before.
The now 49-year-old host, who called an end to his nine-year spell hosting Matchday Live for Premier League Productions earlier this year, responded ‘I wish’ and thanked fans for the kind comments.
Manish Bhasin rose to prominence by hosting Football Focus and The Football League Show
Jeff Stelling
Jeff Stelling became one of the most recognisable voices on television during his time at Sky Sports, where he anchored the broadcaster’s flagship results programme Soccer Saturday for almost three decades.
Known for his energetic passion and encyclopedic knowledge of football, the presenter quickly became a much-loved figure for viewers across the UK, starting the role in 1994 before eventually waving farewell from the network in May 2023.
Since his exit from Sky, Stelling has made regular appearances on talkSPORT and continued to serve as honorary president for his beloved Hartlepool United.
The veteran broadcaster, now 70, still has no plans to retire fully despite his exit from Sky Sports two years ago, having urged there is ‘still a bit of life in the old boy yet’. He now fronts Prime Video’s Every Game, Every Goal show, which brings highlights of Premier League matches to fans.
Stelling still has no plans to retire fully despite his exit from Sky Sports two years ago
Dan Walker made his name at the BBC, both across and away from the world of sport. After taking over from Bhasin as the host of Football Focus in 2009, he remained at the helm of the football show for 12 years, keeping the role even after becoming a mainstay on BBC Breakfast in 2016.
Walker, 48, has been a trusted presenter of several major sports events throughout his career, having worked on five Olympic Games and five FIFA World Cups, while also occasionally deputising on programmes such as Match of the Day and The NFL Show.
In 2022, he swapped the BBC for Channel 5 to become their lead anchor on 5 News, while also appearing in various documentaries. Walker also extended his broadcasting portfolio in 2024 by becoming the host off Classic FM Breakfast, having now almost entirely moved away from the world of sport.
As he continues to balance news, radio and television, Walker enjoys a private family life with his wife Sarah, whom he met at university, and his three children Susanna, Jessica and Chuck.
Dan Walker has been a trusted presenter of several major sports events throughout his career
Richard Keys, 68, was one of the most prominent faces of British football broadcasting through the 1990s and 2000s, helping to shape Sky Sports as the home of live Premier League coverage.
With a broadcasting career stretching back to the late 1970s, Keys worked across multiple major networks including the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and ultimately Sky Sports, where he became the anchor of top-flight football coverage from 1992 onwards.
After almost two decades at Sky, Keys’ long tenure came to an abrupt and controversial end in 2011 when he resigned in the wake of a sexism scandal with former colleague Andy Gray. The pair both left their roles at Sky after a series of sexist conversations were picked up and leaked in January 2011 when they thought their microphones were off.
Following his resignation from Sky, which came after he made a public apology over his comments, Keys has continued to work in sports media for networks including talkSPORT and beIN Sports. He also frequently comments on the game on his own personal website, having lived in Doha, Qatar for several years.
With a broadcasting career stretching back to the late 1970s, Richard Keys (right, next to Andy Gray) has worked with major networks including the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Sky Sports
Sue Barker
Before becoming a national treasure of British broadcasting royalty, Sue Barker was one of the country’s most successful tennis players, winning the 1976 French Open and 15 WTA titles during a glittering career.
After briefly anchoring Sky Sports’ tennis coverage in the early ’90s, Barker joined the BBC to become the face of Today at Wimbledon in 1993, a role she would make her own for three decades.
Over the years, she became synonymous not only with Wimbledon, which she presented from 1994 to 2022, but with a wide range of major sporting events for the BBC, including the Olympics and Commonwealth Games. She also hosted popular quiz show A Question of Sport from 1997 to 2020.
Barker, 69, stepped down from her SW19 presenting role after 30 years in 2022 and has since largely stayed out of the broadcasting spotlight. She has since made the occasional appearance at Wimbledon for interviews or promotional content connected to the Championships, but reportedly declined offers to return to regular TV work.
Sue Barker became the face of Wimbledon after covering the Championships for 30 years
Hazel Irvine
Born in St Andrews in 1965, Scottish broadcast journalist Hazel Irving first joined the BBC in 1990 and has since anchored coverage of every Summer Olympics since Barcelona 1992.
She also made history as the youngest presenter of Grandstand in 1993, while developing an impressive and versatile portfolio with experience across football, athletics, tennis, snooker and skiing, among other sports.
Irvine has established herself as a familiar voice on the Triple Crown snooker tournaments, having held the presenting role for more than two decades. She was awarded with an MBE in the 2024 New Years Honours list for her services to sport and charity.
The popular presenter, who has scaled back the sheer volume of her on-screen work in recent years, continues to work for the BBC and remains one of the most respected voices in the industry.
Hazel Irvine, who has scaled back the sheer volume of her on-screen work in recent years, continues to work for the BBC and remains one of the most respected voices in the industry
Jim Rosenthal
A presenter and commentator whose career has spanned more than 50 years across TV, radio and live events, Jim Rosenthal is one of the most enduring voices in the world of sports broadcasting.
The Oxford-born journalist, who started out in newspapers and BBC radio before moving to ITV in 1980, quickly became a familiar face across a host of sports – including football, boxing, F1 and rugby – for his excellence in broadcasting.
Highlights from his impressive career include anchoring England’s Rugby World Cup triumph in 2003, presenting at an astonishing eight FIFA World Cups and covering over 150 Formula One race weekends.
Rosenthal, who left ITV in 2008, went on to serve as lead presenter of boxing channel BoxNation, host football coverage on Channel 5 and deliver Premier League football on Prime Video.
In 2024, the now 78-year-old broadcasting great was appointed on the board of directors at Northampton Town Football Club and continues to partake in public speaking.
Jim Rosenthal enjoyed a glittering broadcasting career which spanned more than 50 years
Ray Stubbs
A former Tranmere Rovers footballer who retired at the age of just 21 after failing to make a single appearance for the club, Ray Stubbs quickly built a broadcasting career which was far more durable and varied.
Joining BBC Sport in 1986, six years after his retirement, he went on to carve out a 26-year career with the network, presenting across multiple sports including football, darts and snooker.
Stubbs, 69, fronted Football Focus from 1999 to 2004 before moving on to host Final Score on BBC One. He stepped in occasionally to host Match of the Day and was also a stand-in presenter on MOTD2.
Ray Stubbs (left) departed the BBC to join ESPN UK at the launch of its Premier League coverage, presenting and reporting on live matches until the network’s rights shift to BT Sport
In 2009, Stubbs left the BBC to join ESPN UK at the launch of its Premier League coverage, presenting and reporting on live matches until the network’s rights shift to BT Sport. He continued working there as lead football reporter, a role he held until 2016.
More recently, Stubbs has worked as presenter on the World Seniors Darts Championship, both in 2023 and 2024.
