BBC 'Match of the Day' to cover Euro 2012 from Salford

The BBC's Match of the Day coverage of next year's UEFA European Football Championship will be broadcast from Salford, it has been reported.

The event is being co-hosted by Poland and Ukraine, but Gary Lineker and the rest of the team will comment on games from MediaCityUK as part of the Corporation's cost-cutting exercise.

The BBC, which is aiming to slash £670m from its budget, has decided not to send Lineker, Alan Shearer, Alan Hansen and Mark Lawrenson to Eastern Europe unless England or Ireland reach the quarter ­finals, according to the Sunday Mirror.

It's a stark contrast from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, when £1m was spent on a purpose-built studio overlooking Table Mountain in Cape Town.

However, a source claimed that while the Corporation is blaming the move on budget cuts, researchers were simply unimpressed with the facilities in the host countries.

"The official line is that these are austerity measures," he said. "But there are ­rumours some people don't fancy ­spending a month there. Still, it doesn't seem right the BBC will be covering a massive tournament thousands of miles away in Salford."

A BBC spokesman insisted that the decision is solely based on providing "value for ­money".

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