ITV forced to abandon World Cup studio ahead of France’s clash with Morocco as New York is hit by storms

The ITV team of presenters and pundits were forced to leave the swanky New York World Cup studio on Thursday due to storms in the area.

Laura Woods and Co have been praised for their set-up in the United States for the summer tournament, especially after the BBC chose to host the news from Manchester.

However, as the country battled storms throughout the World Cup, they occasionally had to abandon the studio with New York as a backdrop and move to an indoor studio.

On Thursday evening, during the broadcast of France’s quarter-final match against Morocco, conditions meant that the team had to rush in to join the broadcast.

Presenter Marc Pougatch initially welcomed viewers to the broadcast from outside the studio, but the presenter was quickly moved inside, alongside pundits Roy Keane, Ian Wright and Patrick Vieira.

ITV showed images of the storm nearby, with heavy rain in Brooklyn. Meanwhile, matches are postponed by half an hour when lightning strikes are recorded within a five-mile radius of a stadium.

The likes of Ian Wright (right) and Roy Keane (second from left) were ushered in for the France-Morocco match

Fortunately, the team returned to the outside studio at half-time and remained there for full-time analysis.

Viewers watching the ITV broadcast were treated to stunning views of the New York skyline. “Welcome to our New York penthouse, where we will be broadcasting the World Cup for six weeks,” said ITV presenter Pougatch ahead of the first match of the competition. ‘This will be ITV’s home for the duration of the tournament.

Both praised the venue, with Roy Keane and Wright praising ITV’s decision to invest in a major studio on the occasion of the World Cup.

‘Astonishing, amazing,’ said Keane.

Wright added: ‘It’s a fantastic, incredible set. This World Cup, this has to be it, it has to be big, it has to be huge.’

Unlike ITV, the BBC’s broadcast is run from a state-of-the-art studio in Salford, a decision the company has made to save millions in license fee money.

“I’m incredibly happy with it at the moment,” said Alex Kay-Jelski, the BBC’s director of sport. Daily Mail Sports. ‘You’re talking millions in there to probably have a few hundred extra people – and that’s before you build a studio.

‘If I stood here and said everything was going to be done from a studio in Dallas, they would rightfully ask me, ‘How can you justify that expense?’ you would say

‘I don’t think the answer in terms of financial sustainability is to say everyone can go. ‘I don’t think it’s a very smart way for me to spend license fee money.’

BBC had floated the idea of ​​reaching the quarter-finals but again opted to stay at home.

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