Gary Lineker has claimed that it is “not true” that the BBC chose not to broadcast the opening ceremony of the World Cup amid shouts of "outrageous disrespect".
The BBC had the responsibility of broadcasting the opening match of the tournament on Sunday evening with the hosts Qatar falling to a 2-0 defeat to Ecuador. Former West Ham and Everton striker Enner Valencia was the key man for the South Americans, scoring twice.
Whilst the broadcast was completed without a hitch, the BBC did receive some criticism. Some supporters were left baffled with their decision not to broadcast the opening ceremony of the tournament.
Instead, they showed Chelsea ’s WSL clash with London rivals Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge. Emma Hayes' side secured a dominant 3-0 victory.
Outspoken TV host Piers Morgan was among those to have shared their thoughts on the situation. Taking to Twitter, he wrote: “Outrageously disrespectful to Qatar that the BBC didn’t broadcast the World Cup opening ceremony, and instead put out more virtue-signalling guff about how awful it is. If they’re that appalled, they should bring home their vast army of employees & spare us this absurd hypocrisy.”
However, Lineker has since responded to those criticising the BBC's coverage. Quoting a tweet suggesting that the ceremony was not broadcast, the former England star replied: “Not true. It was shown live in its entirety on BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website and red button.
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“The timing of the opening ceremony was changed to an earlier time very recently and WSL was already confirmed on BBC One. If you wanted to watch it, you could.”
Meanwhile, a BBC spokesperson said: "Full build up and coverage of the World Cup has been available across the BBC, including the opening ceremony on iPlayer."
With the decision being made not to televise the opening ceremony, UK viewers missed out on a somewhat bizarre affair. It lasted for less than 30 minutes with Hollywood legend Morgan Freeman making an appearance.
Away from that, there were also dancers banging drums and a camel walking around the pitch. Jung Kook, a member of popular boyband BTS then serenaded the crowd with a performance of "Dreamers" - one of the songs from the Qatar World Cup's official soundtrack.
Whilst the BBC were handed the responsibility of covering the opening game of the tournament, they will also televise England ’s first group game of the tournament against Iran on Monday afternoon. ITV then take over for the following four matches of the tournament, whilst both terrestrial channels are scheduled to broadcast the final on Sunday 18 December.
