Sky to rotate hosts as Keys stopgap

Sky Sports is expected to rotate its existing roster of presenters for live football coverage while it searches for a permanent replacement for Richard Keys, who resigned this week in the wake of the sexism storm.

According to The Guardian, Jeff Stelling and new presenter Ben Shephard are the leading contenders to front Sky's football coverage, as the broadcaster reshuffles its team following Keys's resignation and the sacking of lead analyst Andy Gray.

Speaking after Sky's financial results announcement this week, Sky chief executive Jeremy Darroch said that the leaked comments made by Keys and Gray about female official Sian Massey were "completely unacceptable".

Darroch said: "Events last week were particularly disappointing. It goes against everything Sky Sports stands for as a brand, and a business [which] has always stood for modernisation.

"I don't think anyone broadcasts more women's sport than we do. The sort of comments that were made are completely at odds with that."

However, Keys's wife Julia has claimed that the manner in which Sky handled the departures of her husband and Gray was "offside".

"It's really sad. They [Keys and Gray] contributed so much, putting Sky on the map. Whether you like them personally or not, professionally there's very few who would knock them," she said.

"I feel the wrong two guys were given the red card. It doesn't quite make sense in a way and it's questionable the way it has been handled. I think Sky was offside in the way it handled it."

According to a separate report today, Arabic TV station Al Jazeera intends to secure the services of Keys and Gray for its growing sports coverage.