On The Ball (ITV television show) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

On The Ball is a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

ITV

ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...

Saturday lunchtime television show about football, which ran as part of World of Sport
World of Sport (UK TV series)
World of Sport was a British television sport anthology programme which ran on ITV between 2 January 1965 to 28 September 1985 in response to competition from BBC's Grandstand...

in the 1980s, and as a stand-alone show from 1998 to 2004.

The original On The Ball was a half hour football round-up segment shown as part of the World of Sport
World of Sport (UK TV series)
World of Sport was a British television sport anthology programme which ran on ITV between 2 January 1965 to 28 September 1985 in response to competition from BBC's Grandstand...

Saturday afternoon sports programming on ITV, preceding the traditional Saturday afternoon 3pm kick off time. Initially presented by Brian Moore

Brian Moore (commentator)

Brian Moore was a British sports commentator.-Early life:Moore was born in Gillingham, Kent and educated at the Cranbrook School, Kent, which was also the school of fellow commentators Peter West and Barry Davies....

, it was later hosted by Ian St John and Jimmy Greaves

Jimmy Greaves

James Peter 'Jimmy' Greaves is an English former football player, England's third highest international goalscorer, the highest goalscorer in the history of Tottenham Hotspur football club, the highest goalscorer in the history of English top flight football and more recently a television pundit -...

. When World of Sport was discontinued in 1985, On The Ball was replaced by Saint and Greavsie
Saint and Greavsie
Saint and Greavsie was a popular double act consisting of ex-footballers Ian St. John and Jimmy Greaves. It is best remembered for the ITV programme, Saint and Greavsie, that ran from 1985 to 1992. Previously the duo had presented "On the Ball" in the World of Sport show.-Format:Although Greaves...

, a stand-alone lunchtime football show hosted by the same presenters. Saint and Greavsie ended in 1992 when Sky Sports

Sky Sports

Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...

gained the rights to broadcast Premier League football, although ITV lunchtime coverage of football continued with occasional Champions League

UEFA Champions League

The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...

shows.

On The Ball was revived on ITV

ITV

from the beginning of the 1998/99 season, presented by Gabby Logan

Gabby Logan

Gabby Logan is a television presenter and radio presenter, as well as a former Wales international gymnast. She currently hosts programmes for BBC Sport, mainly focusing on football.- Early life :...

, initially co-presented by Barry Venison

Barry Venison

Barry Venison is a retired English footballer who enjoyed a successful playing career from 1981 to 1997. He later worked as an television pundit.-Sunderland:...

. The show was extended to an hour in 2001, coinciding with ITV's capture of the Premier League highlights package from the BBC which also saw the launch of The Goal Rush
The Goal Rush
The Goal Rush was a live ITV television programme that aired from 2001 to 2003 produced by Granada Television. The programme was broadcast on Saturdays as a rival show to Final Score on BBC One, and provided live football scores from the Premier League and the Football League...

Saturday afternoon results show and The Premiership

The Premiership (TV series)

The Premiership was a television programme which showed highlights from the FA Premier League...

Saturday evening show. On The Ball was discontinued again in 2004 after the BBC regained the rights to the Premier League.

See also