Viewers were left unimpressed with ITV's coverage of the Netherlands vs Japan World Cup match on Sunday night, as complaints about poor picture quality flooded social media.
Match Overview
The Netherlands and Japan served up an entertaining 2-2 draw, but ITV viewers were far from satisfied with what they saw. Hajime Moriyasu's side fought back twice after Virgil van Dijk headed the Dutch in front and Crysencio Summerville restored their advantage.
Studio Praise
ITV's studio has garnered considerable praise, situated in Brooklyn, New York, with a breathtaking backdrop of the Manhattan skyline. Despite this, viewers tuning in at home on Sunday evening were deeply unimpressed by the picture quality being delivered by the broadcaster.
Viewer Reactions
Many took to social media platform X to vent their frustration. One wrote: "Whats with the picture quality on @ITV? Absolutely awful. Glad I'm not a football fan because I couldn't sit and watch a match like that." Another said: "The @ITV picture quality of the World Cup is awful. Should have stayed in Salford and invested in some camera technology. It's like watching on a 24 inch Granada rental in the early 80s."
A third fumed: "@ITV what's with the poor picture quality of your World Cup games, had to turn off watching the Japan v Dutch game giving me a headache. Same on previous matches." Another chimed in: "The picture quality is worse than a dial up stream 20 years ago. It's literally making my eyes go funny. Awful stuff @ITV."
One viewer asked: "Why is the picture-quality so awful for the World Cup on ITV? Is there anywhere else I can watch it?" While a sixth wrote: "Props to ITV for showing us lower resolution picture quality than the last time the World Cup was held in Mexico."
ITV's Coverage Team
ITV's coverage is being fronted by Mark Pougatch, Laura Woods and Semra Hunter, with a punditry panel comprising Roy Keane, Ian Wright, Gary Neville, Duncan Ferguson, Patrick Vieira, Karen Carney, Ange Postecoglou, Juan Mata, Emma Hayes, Ferguson, Jobi McAnuff and Bradley Wright-Phillips.
Director's Statement
Speaking ahead of the tournament, ITV director of sport Niall Sloane said: "This is the biggest FIFA World Cup in history and we will be live from New York City for the duration of the tournament, bringing every key moment to life, free-to-air. Nothing unifies the UK audience more than a global sporting event and they don't come much bigger than this. Our broadcast line-up is second to none and our comprehensive coverage across ITV, ITVX, our World Cup 24/7 Channel, plus our digital platforms will ensure the ITV audience doesn't miss a second of action."
