England fans warned of major blow ahead of tonight's Euro 2024 TV clash with Netherlands
ok.co.ukEngland have a tough task on their hands tonight - and not just because of the technical flair of the Netherlands team, who the Three Lions will face in the Euro 2024 semi-final in Dortmund.Their 'real' opponents may turn out to ITV, after fans warned of a very real statistic that makes grim reading when you consider this evening's game is being aired on the commercial channel.
Since 1996, there have been 31 matches broadcast solely on ITV - and England have won only nine of them.That is a startling contrast to games shown on the BBC over the same period - with 21 victories out of 29 fixtures.The incredibly unlucky record of games shown by the Laura Woods-fronted broadcaster has come to be known as the "curse of ITV" - with some England fans calling for the BBC to be handed all games in the national interest.
The many ITV-broadcast defeats included the quarter-final at the Qatar World Cup in 2022 when the team were knocked out by France and worried fans have been posting their pessimistic predictions on X.
One wrote: "It will go to either extra-time or penalties and England will lose in either scenario.That's the 'Curse of ITV' for you!" Another said that Gareth Southgate's team were going to need to "overturn the curse of ITV for the semi" while a third fretted: "Oh god the curse of ITV beckons".
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