| Match of the Day 2 | |
|---|---|
 Title card | |
| Also known as | MOTD2 |
| Genre | Sport highlights |
| Presented by |
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| Starring | Predominant analysts: (2022–23 season) Tim Cahill Dion Dublin Jermaine Jenas Martin Keown Danny Murphy Micah Richards Alan Shearer Shay Given Ian Wright |
| Theme music composer | Barry Stoller[1] |
| Opening theme | Match of the Day them |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 652 |
| Production | |
| Producer |
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| Production location | |
| Editor |
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| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 45–90 minutes |
| Production company | BBC Sport |
| Original release | |
| Network | |
| Release | 15 August 2004 (2004-08-15) – 18 May 2025 (2025-05-18) |
| Related | |
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Match of the Day 2 was aPremier Leaguefootball highlights programme. It was a companion show toMatch of the Day, usually broadcast onBBC One on Sunday evenings, thus facilitating coverage of the respective week's PL matches that were played since the broadcast of the initial programme.
At the start of the 2025/26 Premier League season, the show was rebranded to be under the main Match of the Day branding.[3] One of the main factors is that host Mark Chapman now also hosts Saturday's programme.
Match of the Day 2 followed the same format asMatch of the Day, with highlights of the day'sPremier League football, followed by post-match interviews and tactical analysis.
The show originally featured a "Top 5" countdown based around a current event or aguest analyst on the show, such as "Worst Haircuts", "Shocking Refereeing Decisions", or "Golden Oldies." This was replaced by "2 Good, 2 Bad", which offered a humorous look at the goings on of the football weekend in England, such as embarrassing gaffes, unusual celebrations, intimacy between players and managers, or supporters falling asleep.
Ahead of the2019–20 Premier League seasonBBC Sport upgraded the studio thatMatch of the Day,Match of the Day 2,Football Focus, andFinal Score broadcasts from.
The facility uses a "4KUHD readyvirtual reality studio" and usesEpic Games'Unreal Engine 4rendering technology.
The studio is located atdock10 studios,MediaCityUK.[4]
From the beginning of the2012–13 season,Match of the Day 2 moved fromBBC Two toBBC One. TheBBC stated this was because "of the increased number ofPremier League games played on a Sunday."[5]
Occasionally,Match of the Day 2 either switches back to BBC Two or moves its broadcast time, to make way for othersporting events. These have included theSuper Bowl, theAugusta Masters Golf Tournament, and theWorld Snooker Championships. On other occasions,Match of the Day 2 has been delayed to Monday night to cover a particular fixture that took place that on the Monday evening. During final weekend of Premier League season all 20 teams play their matches on Sunday at the same time with BBC's highlights programme on that Sunday evening for the final round of fixtures dropping the number 2 from its name and simply being referred to Match of the Day.
Mark Chapman serves as the predominant presenter.
In January 2025, theBBC announced changes to the presenting ofMatch of the Day, Match of the Day 2, and Match of the Day: Champions League followingGary Lineker's departure fromMatch of the Day at the end of the2024–25 season. The announcement said thatKelly Cates,Mark Chapman, andGabby Logan would share the presenting of all 3 programmes.[6]
Among those providing analysis during the2024–25 season have beenShay Given,Joe Hart,Steph Houghton,Glenn Murray,Theo Walcott, andFara Williams, among others.[7][8][9][10][11][12]
In January 2018, thePremier League announced that it had awarded the UK highlights toBBC Sport. The rights package cost £211.5 million and covers three seasons from 2019 to 2020.
The January 2018 agreement also includesMatch of the Day,Match of the Day 2 Extra,Match of the Day Kickabout,Football Focus,Final Score, andThe Premier League Show.[13]
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.
