The future of Football Focus is the subject of urgent talks at the BBC due to a dramatic drop in viewing figures.
Mail Sport can reveal the 49-year-old programme has lost more than one third of its early-season audience in the space of four years, with the average weekly viewing figures for August falling from 849,000 in 2019 to just 564,000 last month.
Football Focus is not thought to be under immediate threat but reversing the decline will be a priority for the corporation’s new director of sport, with Barbara Slater retiring next spring. The programme will celebrate its 50th anniversary next year and serious thought will be given as to whether a major rebrand is required.