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England fans rage at 'atrocious' picture quality during ITV's New Zealand friendly broadcast

Viewers watching England's pre-World Cup warm-up against New Zealand at Raymond James Stadium in Florida were left furious by what many described as unwatchably poor picture quality on ITV's coverage, with some comparing it to footage from the 1960s and 1980s.

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England fans rage at 'atrocious' picture quality during ITV's New Zealand friendly broadcast
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England’s 2026 World Cup preparations were overshadowed off the pitch on Saturday as fans watching the Three Lions’ friendly against New Zealand at Raymond James Stadium in Florida vented their frustration at what they called shockingly poor broadcast picture quality.

Thomas Tuchel’s side were playing their second-to-last warm-up fixture before the tournament, but for many supporters back in the UK the match was barely watchable. Social media was quickly flooded with complaints, with viewers comparing the footage to archive material from decades past.

“Is this a rerun from 1982 or 1978 World Cup? Atrocious quality,” one fan posted on X. Another wrote: “What is happening with your pictures of the England match. Looks like a 1980s TV.” A third asked: “Why does the game look like poor quality picture, like it’s a 1960s replay or something?” One supporter went further, warning: “World Cup will look crap on ITV, at least BBC will be having a 4K feed.”

Not all viewers placed the blame solely with the broadcaster. One noted the same issue appeared during the Scotland match on BBC, while another suggested the problem lay with the American-sourced footage rather than ITV’s own production.

Commentary also drew criticism. Pundit Lee Dixon and play-by-play commentator Sam Matterface both attracted complaints, with one fan writing: “Please don’t let Lee Dixon and his negative views anywhere near an England World Cup match for the whole month.” Another questioned whether Matterface offered anything close to the standard set by his predecessor Clive Tyldesley on England games.

On the pitch, Harry Kane gave England supporters something to cheer when he headed home a Djed Spence cross in first-half stoppage time. Kane, John Stones and Morgan Rogers all created chances, though New Zealand posed occasional problems for the defence.

With Arsenal players not yet present in the United States, Tuchel named an unconventional starting XI that included Ollie Watkins deployed on the wing. The England manager substituted the entire starting lineup at half-time, ensuring all available players received minutes ahead of the final pre-tournament friendly against Costa Rica and the World Cup opener against Croatia.

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