BBC officials have made it clear that they will not provide financial backing for leading pundits like Micah Richards to appear on rival podcasts during the World Cup.
Cost constraints, as well as concerns over reducing the corporation's carbon footprint, mean that most of the BBC's World Cup coverage will take place from its Salford studios. As a result, Richards is expected to be based there for much of the tournament, with a major role in hand.
However, Richards has also committed to appearing on The Rest is Football podcast, which will be hosted by Gary Lineker in New York and distributed through Netflix.
Lineker, who recently split from the BBC, will be working remotely from its US studio throughout the World Cup. While he may invite other pundits to join him when they are available, Richards's travel costs will need to be met by either Netflix or the production company behind the podcast.
Shearer, on the other hand, will be in the United States for co-commentary duties with the BBC, increasing his chances of meeting up with Lineker in person.
Cost constraints, as well as concerns over reducing the corporation's carbon footprint, mean that most of the BBC's World Cup coverage will take place from its Salford studios. As a result, Richards is expected to be based there for much of the tournament, with a major role in hand.
However, Richards has also committed to appearing on The Rest is Football podcast, which will be hosted by Gary Lineker in New York and distributed through Netflix.
Lineker, who recently split from the BBC, will be working remotely from its US studio throughout the World Cup. While he may invite other pundits to join him when they are available, Richards's travel costs will need to be met by either Netflix or the production company behind the podcast.
Shearer, on the other hand, will be in the United States for co-commentary duties with the BBC, increasing his chances of meeting up with Lineker in person.
they're basically making him stay in salford the whole time & then expect him to just magically be available for lineker's podcast? that's not cool, mate 
also what's with the carbon footprint thing tho? can't they just offset his flights or something? and why's shearer getting all the perks while micah gets none 
he's going to be based there for most of the tournament which means we won't get to see him on other podcasts like the rest is football 
. I mean, who can blame them for cutting costs when it comes to financial backing? It makes sense they'd want to keep everything under control while maintaining a strong presence in the UK.
? The fact that Micah Richards will be working closely with Gary Lineker from their respective studios is a plus though 
. It'll be interesting to see how Netflix handles the production costs for this podcast, hope it's worth it in the end 
!
what a life 
. I mean, think about it - the BBC is trying to cut costs and reduce its carbon footprint, which is a good thing, right? 
. Guess we'll have to wait and see how that all plays out 
.
but i guess it's all part of the cost of bein' a big-name pundit in sports journalism, right? 
still think it's kinda cool that Gary Lineker is still goin' strong w/ his own podcast tho 
and Shearer's gettin' to chill out in the US for co-commentary duties 
and good luck getting that podcast gig sorted with netflix, cost constraints are no joke 
lineker getting all comfy in his new home and then suddenly richards is expected to shell out for flights? not cool 
Micah Richards is actually gonna have a role at the World Cup and still gonna do that podcast 
, especially with Lineker being able to roll up to NYC whenever he feels like it 
... maybe he'll have some epic podcasts from his hotel room 
. On the other hand, Gary Lineker gets to hang out with Shearer in the States 
. Meanwhile, Gary Lineker getting to work remotely from the US? That's just great for him, but what about the rest of us back in Blighty who want to see more British voices on the global stage? 
.
Like, what's the plan there? Is Netflix really gonna foot the bill for his flights or something? 
Maybe they could've found another way to make it work? 
anyway, I'm low-key curious to see how this whole thing plays out...