Timeline of sport on Channel 5 facts for kids

This article explores the history of sports broadcasting on Channel 5, a popular British television channel. Since it first started, Channel 5 has brought many exciting sports events to viewers across the UK. From live American sports to major football tournaments and thrilling racing, the channel has been a home for various athletic competitions. This timeline highlights some of the most memorable moments in Channel 5's sports coverage.

Sports on Channel 5: The Early Years (1990s)

Kicking Off with Sports: 1997

• 31 March – When Channel 5 first launched, it immediately started showing American sports overnight. This began with a show called Live & Dangerous. It featured live games and highlights from sports like Major League Baseball.
• 31 May – Even though Channel 5 didn't plan to show live sports during prime time, it surprised everyone. It bought the rights to show an England football match against Poland for the 1998 World Cup. It also showed England's rugby union games from their tour in Argentina.
• Autumn – The show Football on 5 officially launched. Football became a regular part of Channel 5's schedule. They bought rights to UEFA Cup games and away qualifying matches for UK national teams. They continued showing these for the next ten years.

More Sports Action: 1998-1999

• 1998
  • March – Channel 5 created a special show just for Major League Baseball called MLB on Five.
• 1999
  • Channel 5 took over from Channel 4 as the main free-to-air channel for the NFL (American Football). They showed NFL games for the next six seasons.

Channel 5's Sporting Journey: The 2000s

New Sports and Big Events: 2000-2002

• 2000
  • Channel 5 began showing live coverage of MotoGP, which is motorcycle racing. They showed these races for three seasons.
  • They also broadcast weekly highlights of the English Premiership for one season.
• 2001
  • 30 May-10 June – Channel 5 broadcast the FIFA Confederations Cup, a major international football tournament. They also showed the next two tournaments.
• 2002
  • Channel 5 bought the rights to the Scottish League Cup (football) and showed the tournament for two seasons.

Changes in Coverage: 2004-2006

• 2004
  • June – Channel 5's regular coverage of the National Hockey League (NHL) stopped for two years. Another channel, NASN, took over the main broadcasting rights.
• 2006
  • May – Channel 5 became the main free-to-air channel for highlights of England's home cricket matches.
  • September – Channel 5 started showing the National Hockey League again.

Exciting Returns and Departures: 2007-2009

• 2007
  • September –
    • Five gained the rights to show highlights and some live games from Serie A, which is Italy's top football league. Live games were shown weekly on Sundays. This coverage was called Football Italiano.
    • The NFL returned to Channel 5. They signed a deal to broadcast Monday Night Football and NBC Sunday Night Football.
  • Channel 5's ten-year run of showing away matches for UK national football teams came to an end.
• 2008
  • 27 June – Five decided to stop showing Serie A football after just one season.
  • 29 October – The show MLB on Five was broadcast for the last time. Channel 5 decided to stop showing Major League Baseball due to tough economic times.
  • 11–21 December – Channel 5 showed live coverage of the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup, a football tournament featuring top club teams from around the world.
• 2009
  • 12 June – Channel 5's coverage of the NHL finished. They also stopped showing NBA (basketball) at the same time.
  • September – Channel 5 became the main broadcaster for the UEFA Europa League. This meant they could show the entire tournament, including the final, for the first time. Before this, other channels like BBC or ITV had the rights for the later stages.
  • 9 September – Channel 5 signed a deal to broadcast highlights of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a mixed martial arts event, on free-to-air TV in the UK.

Channel 5 and Sports: The 2010s

Shifting Focus: 2010-2012

• 2010
  • Channel 5 stopped its live overnight coverage of American sports. This included ending its coverage of American Football. This marked the end of a long period where American sports were a regular feature on Channel 5's overnight schedule.
• 2011
  • Channel 5 broadcast the Great Birmingham Run and Great South Run for the first time. This was the channel's first time showing athletics events.
• 2012
  • 9 May – Channel 5's fifteen years of showing Europe's second-tier football club competition ended. This happened when they showed live coverage of the 2012 UEFA Europa League Final.
  • 28 July – Football on 5 ended. Channel 5 stopped showing live football after the rights to the UEFA Europa League moved to ITV. The last game shown was a friendly match before the season started.

Football Returns and New Sports: 2015-2017

• 2015
  • Channel 5 expanded its coverage of Mixed Martial Arts. It started showing highlights of every BAMMA event.
  • 8 August – Football returned to Channel 5! They took over the contract to broadcast highlights of the English Football League and the League Cup. They launched two new shows under the familiar Football on 5 name: The Championship and The Goal Rush. These shows were broadcast on Saturday evenings.
• 2016
  • 4 September – Channel 5 gained the UK broadcasting rights for Formula E, which is electric car racing. They started showing races from the 2016–17 season and continued for the next full season.
• 2017
  • Coverage of MotoGP returned to Channel 5, but this time it was only highlights. Channel 5 covered the event for two years.
  • September – Channel 5 took over from ITV as the broadcaster of highlights for Premiership Rugby. This deal also meant that five matches per season would be shown live on Channel 5. This was the first time the league was shown live on free-to-air television. The deal also included highlights of the Premiership Rugby Cup.

End of an Era: 2018-2019

• 2018
  • 6 May – Football League Tonight was broadcast for the final time. This ended Channel 5's three-year deal to show highlights of the English Football League.
• 2019
  • 15 September – After 14 seasons, Channel 5 showed cricket highlights for the last time. The rights for cricket coverage moved to the BBC from 2020 onwards.

Recent Sports Action on Channel 5: The 2020s

Sports in the New Decade: 2020-2022

• 2020
  • 14 September – Channel 5, which is now part of the CBS Sports family, started showing the NFL again. They began broadcasting the weekly Monday night game and a weekly highlights show.
• 2022
  • 2 March – Wasserman Boxing and Channel 5 announced a deal. This meant Channel 5 would show five boxing fight nights promoted by Wasserman Boxing during 2022. This deal was later extended to cover 2023 as well.