Sky Sports have reportedly made the decision to cancel British TV and sporting institution Soccer AM after nearly three decades on the air.
The iconic football and comedy talk show which first aired in 1995 and enjoyed huge popularity throughout the 90s and early 2000s is set to end at the end of this season (its 28th) with just 10 episodes left, as per an exclusive report by The Sun.
According to a source who revealed details to the outlet, Soccer AM will be axed at the end of the 2022/23 season due to low ratings and viewing figures, which have both gradually decreased over time — as has the running time, which went from 240 minutes to just 90 in more recent years.
The insider went on to claim that the decision has come as “a complete bombshell” to those involved with the programme, with “morale at an all-time low”.
Staff on the show were reportedly told of the cancellation on Tuesday, with their last episode airing on Saturday, 27 May, the day before the end of the Premier League season, at which point they will be made redundant.
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Issuing a response to the news, a Sky Sports spokesperson said: “Soccer AM has played an important role in our coverage of football for the past three decades, and we continually adapt to the evolving needs of our customers.
“We now go into a period of consultation to discuss the proposed changes with our people. We are unable to provide more detail while these consultations are underway.”
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As for current presenters John Fendley and former footballer Jimmy Bullard, who have been at the helm of the show since 2019, the two are said to have been left “fuming” by the decision. Figures from within Sky and around the footballing world have been paying tribute to the programme.
Just heard that @SoccerAM is finishing at the end of the season. I had 14 years of going through Premier League & @EFL clubs dressing rooms. Training with Clubs for features & basically having a laugh 😂 Fun part of my time at Sky 🤣 pic.twitter.com/7FbqUonB2f
Soccer Am ending at the end of the season 😔 I remember rushing downstairs as a kid to watch Lovejoy & Helen every week. The shows changed over the years but I still enjoy watching. Great memories and thankfully I’ve got my hat trick ball ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/fXIIwLtoWk
The show began with Russ Williams and long-time host Helen Chamberlain presenting back in 1995 before the latter was joined by veteran TV personality Tim Lovejoy just a couple of years later, with the two going on to become the most famous pairing in the show’s history.
As well as recurring comedic guest ‘Tubes’ (Peter Dale), some of the most famous guests you can think of made their way through Soccer AM‘s doors down the years, including the likes of Oasis, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Kevin Hart, Dave Bautista, umpteenth footballers and countless others — you name ’em.
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However, the show was not without its controversies and reflected a very different time and admittedly outdated part of British culture, to say the least.
Perhaps the most infamous serial segment of the show was its ‘Soccerette’ feature, which saw attractive young women walk into the studio and asked how old they were as men cheered “great age!”
The show obviously had to evolve over time but sadly its viewership continued to dwindle, no matter how much affection there was back in its heyday.
Speaking to Mirror Sport back in May 2022, leading figure Bullard admitted “it’s hard trying to refresh a show every single week with all the new material”, but that he still found it a privilege to be trusted with reinventing a show that is still “the start of a lot of people’s mornings on a Saturday.”
It was certainly far from perfect and pretty problematic at times, but it still played a huge role in the lives of many British people and young football fans’ formative years.
Manchester City’s Nathan Aké donates piano to grassroots music venue
Thomas Melia
Footballer and Manchester City star Nathan Aké has donated a piano to an iconic city centre grassroots venue in Manchester.
To celebrate ‘International Piano Day’, the Dutch defender has teamed up with legendary instrument-makers Casio by donating a state-of-the-art piano in one very lucky music venue.
Aké and Casio are donating pianos across the UK through their joint project titled ‘Playing For Change’.
The iconic grassroots venue that’s receiving this prestigious instrument is none other than Band on the Wall, which has been pumping out live music under this name since 1975.
Processed with VSCO with kp5 presetProcessed with VSCO with kp5 presetCredit: Supplied
This new addition will help the venue as a whole, but more importantly, it will come in very handy for their Saturday Music Club.
Running every weekend, this session helps young people discover music and develop their skills, now via the fantastic PX-S7000 Casio piano.
Band on the Wall is a much-loved and adored Manchester city centremusic institution, and they aren’t the only place benefitting from the Manchester city star and Casio.
So far, 12 disadvantaged schools in the UK have benefitted from this joint effort from Aké and Casio, all of which were surprised with their very own digital piano.
This newest partnership won’t come as a surprise to fans of the Man City centre-back, as he’s been known to play the piano since teaching himself in 2020, and now he’s spreading his love of music to communities nationwide.
Neil Evans, Head of Casio EMI, commented:“It’s exciting for us to support Band on the Wall with a gift of a brand new Privia piano.”
“We’re hoping it’s used often and inspires people into learning the piano and increasing their access to the joys of music, which is at the core of Playing For Change.”
As for Aké, while he might be sidelined for the foreseeable following surgery on a fractured foot, the Netherlands international will hopefully be able to get lots of practice playing those keys.
Featured Images — Publicity Picture (via Supplied)/pantkiewicz (via Flickr)
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Pep Guardiola delivers gutting news as Man City are hit with Erling Haaland injury blow
Danny Jones
Pep Guardiola has passed on some gutting fitness news for Manchester City fans as star striker Erling Haaland is confirmed to be injured for several weeks and could even miss the rest of the Premier League season.
The title might be out of reach this year, and the Champions League knockout against Real Madrid was definitely hard for Blues to take, but with Man City into the semi-finals of the FA Cup, there’s still a very strong chance they could end 2024/25 with a piece of silverware.
However, they’ll have to make it through another two massive rounds at Wembley and seemingly the remainder of the season without Haaland and his goals, as the Catalan coach revealed that the club expects him to be out injured for “six to seven weeks.”
Not exactly how City fans would have wanted to see the rest of an already frustrating season play out.
🗣️ "We don't have another player with his skills."
Relaying diagnosis from the medical team, Pep said the hope is that the big Norwegian number nine could be back for the very tail end of the campaign, but at the very least, he “will be ready for the [FIFA Club] World Cup.”
He went on to add that “these kinds of things happen” and that he feels “sorry” for all of the other injuries that have befell his squad up till now, adding that they can only hope for a speedy recovery and for him to return as soon as possible.
The 24-year-old hasn’t had too many big injury problems in his career thus far, although his longest spell on the sidelines did come at the end of 2023 when a stress fracture kept him out until the new year.
This time around, Haaland suffered an injury to his ankle during the City’s FA Cup win over Bournemouth on Sunday following a challenge from defensive midfielder Lewis Cook.
He was forced in the second half and was seen leaving the Vitality Stadium on crutches after the game.
Erling Haaland seen leaving Bournemouth in a protective boot and crutches. 🤕
Having led the golden boot race for a good chunk of the season – as he’s become accustomed too since he arrived in England – City‘s sub-optimal season has seen him slink into second behind high-flying Mo Salah on 27, but he still has a couple dozen goals and a trio of assists to show for it.
Speaking of Salah, the soon-to-leave ‘Egyptian King’ has been the talisman for Liverpool this season, and his contributions could see them lift the trophy in Arne Slot’s first season as early as 13 April, depending on how fellow title rivals Arsenal fare in their next two matches.
As for how City round out their domestic campaign, reclaiming the FA Cup after last year’s derby disappointment looks like the main goal.
You can watch Pep Guardiola’s press conference ahead of the game against Leicester City at 19:45pm tomorrow (Wednesday, 2 April) in full HERE.
Danny Jones -
22nd March 2023 
