Category Sports News

Kelly Cates, Mark Chapman and Gabby Logan will host Match of the Day from the start of the 2025-26 season.

It is the first time the role will be shared between three people, and they will split presenting duties for Match of the Day 2 on Sundays and MOTD: Champions League on Wednesdays, as well as Saturday’s flagship show.

Kelly Cates has had a a 27-year career in football with stints on all major broadcasters, including the BBC on Radio 5 Live. She previously hosted 606 with Ian Wright on Sundays. Cates – whose dad is former Liverpool and Scotland legend Sir Kenny Dalglish – has been presenting Premier League football for Sky since 2017. She will also continue to work for Sky Sports.

Mark Chapman, known as ‘Chappers’, has been hosting MOTD2 since 2013. He also presents a range of sports programming on BBC Radio 5 Live including the Monday Night Club and 606. He’s hosted various sporting events for both BBC TV and radio. Chapman also presented Sky Sports’ coverage of the Carabao Cup.

Gabby Logan first joined the BBC in 2007 and has presented many sporting events, including men’s and women’s World Cups and European Championships, the Six Nations and Olympics. Since 2013, Logan has co-hosted BBC Sports Personality of the Year. Her father is former Wales and Leeds midfielder Terry Yorath.

Match of the Day, which is the longest-running football show in the world having launched on 22 August 1964, has had five previous long-term hosts:

“It’s really great to share it because we bring different experiences and different interests within the game,” said Logan.

“We bring different ways of broadcasting and that will mean our pundits are kept on their toes and share different kinds of analysis.”

Chapman said: “People might find this hard to believe but there’s absolutely no competition between the three of us. We’ll do a mix of everything that works for us all as individuals, and all of us are really keen that it’s fair.

“Not only is it a great role just on its own but I’m sharing it with two people I really admire, respect and genuinely like. It’s a great set-up,” said Cates.

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Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix

Venue: Imola Dates: 16-18 May Race start: 14:00 BST on Sunday

Oscar Piastri led Lando Norris to a McLaren one-two in first practice at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.

Less than a 10th of a second covered the top five cars, as Williams driver Carlos Sainz took third place ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell and Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton.

The session was brought to a premature end two minutes before the scheduled end when Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto crashed at the second Rivazza corner.

The Brazilian lost control at the right-hander, effectively the last corner on the lap, when he got a snap of oversteer mid-corner. The car flicked into the barriers pretty much front-on and damaged his front wing and nose.

Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was sixth fastest from the Red Bull of reigning champion Max Verstappen.

Red Bull have some upgrades on the car, including a revised side-pod shape and radiator inlet, but Verstappen was complaining of a lack of rear grip over the radio as he lapped 0.36secs off the pace.

The demands of the old-school Imola circuit caught out a number of drivers, as Hamilton and his team-mate Charles Leclerc were among those who ran wide or bounced over the kerbs at one of the three chicanes that populate the historic track.

Another was Williams’ Alex Albon, who was eighth fastest ahead of the Saubers of Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg.

Lance Stroll, driving a heavily upgraded Aston Martin as the team seek to improve their performance after a poor start to the year, was 11th fastest.

Australian import Tristan Sailor says St Helens’ comprehensive Super League win over Catalans Dragons is evidence Saints are playing for head coach Paul Wellens.

Pressure has ramped up on club legend Wellens after a sticky patch form-wise which saw Saints lose to rivals Wigan, Warrington and old foes Leeds.

But Sailor was one of the stars as they tore into the Dragons on Thursday night, Saints scoring seven tries without reply in a 40-0 thrashing as teenage half-back George Whitby picked up a hat-trick.

“It takes a lot of resilience to get through what he was copping and our performances – he cops the brunt of it,” Sailor told BBC 5 Sports Extra.

“We’re always behind Paul and I think it shows his resilience has reflected on us, and hopefully we can keep that moving forward.

“We’ve obviously had a bit of a rough start, had a few close losses and for the past couple of weeks haven’t been at our best but the boys were awesome.

One of the conundrums Wellens has had to deal with this season has been involving all of his pivot options in a system that complements the team, with Sailor, Whitby, captain Jonny Lomax and Jack Welsby all flitting between positions in a bid to find the right rhythm.

Thursday’s move to the wing, a position Sailor has covered before, brought the best out of the former Brisbane Broncos and St George Illawarra flier, and allowed Welsby, Lomax and Whitby the space to create in the spine.

“I loved it, one of my strengths is that I can play a lot of positions and sometimes dynamic-wise you have to move to fit in,” Sailor added.

“It worked really well, I enjoyed getting to run the ball and do a lot of talking.

Fly-half Billy Burns will leave Munster at the conclusion of the 2024-25 season.

The former Gloucester player joined the province last summer after spending six seasons with Ulster.

The 30-year-old has won seven caps for Ireland having made his debut against Wales in 2020.

Munster, who will be under new head coach Clayton McMillan next season, have also confirmed that Scott Buckley, Patrick Campbell, Liam Coombes, Jack Daly and Cian Hurley will depart Thomond Park once the season has concluded.

It had previously been announced that Peter O’Mahony, Conor Murray, David Kilcoyne and Stephen Archer are also in their last seasons with the side.

Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix

Venue: Imola Dates: 16-18 May Race start: 14:00 BST on Sunday

Lewis Hamilton’s father Anthony is to take on an official role with motorsport’s governing body the FIA on young driver development.

Hamilton, who was instrumental in the start of Lewis’ career and was his manager until 2010, has been working with FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem for 18 months on the organisation’s young driver development programme.

A spokesperson said Anthony Hamilton had “provided invaluable insights into an area he is very familiar with”.

The move, first reported by the Times. comes as Ben Sulayem faces an election for the presidency in December after three tumultuous years in the role that have been marked by a series of controversies.

The latest of these was this week when it emerged Ben Sulayem is planning to change the FIA statutes for the second time in six months in ways that appear to further extend his control.

And Anthony Hamilton’s decision to work with the FIA comes despite his son’s obvious frustrations with Ben Sulayem’s leadership.

Hamilton has made a series of remarks over recent times that have made his feelings clear, including on Thursday in the context of the FIA’s U-turn on punishments for drivers swearing.

Australia bowler Mitchell Starc will not return to the Indian Premier League when it resumes on Saturday.

Starc, 35, has played in all 11 matches for Delhi Capitals, who remain in contention for the play-offs, but will not travel back to India, with Australia’s World Test Championship final to follow next month against South Africa at Lord’s.

Fellow quick Josh Hazlewood is nursing a shoulder issue in Australia and a decision is yet to be made whether he will return to play for Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

RCB are currently second in the standings with three games to play while Delhi sit a place outside of the play-offs in fifth.

Australia’s players are set to meet in the UK on 4 June to prepare for the defence of their world Test title.

The IPL play-offs begin on 29 May with the final on 3 June, meaning Hazlewood could play a full part in the IPL’s latter stages if passed fit.

Captain Pat Cummins and batter Travis Head, also in Australia’s Test squad, will return to India to compete the IPL season at Sunrisers Hyderabad before travelling to England. Sunrisers are already out of contention.

Cricket South Africa (CSA) have not confirmed whether their Test players will remain available for the remainder of the IPL, although coach Shukri Conrad said the Proteas were “not budging” on wanting their players to return on 26 May.

Eight of South Africa’s Test squad are in the IPL – Kagiso Rabada, Aiden Markram, Marco Jansen, Tristan Stubbs, Lungi Ngidi, Wiaan Mulder, Ryan Rickelton and Corbin Bosch.

South Africa are scheduled to play a warm-up match against Zimbabwe at Arundel from 3 June.