ITV's World Cup picture quality draws widespread viewer fury during Japan vs Netherlands

Japan rescued a 2-2 draw against the Netherlands in their World Cup opener on Sunday, but the talking point among viewers in the UK was not the comeback — it was the picture quality on ITV, which drew a torrent of complaints on social media.

Hajime Moriyasu’s side fell behind twice, first to a Virgil van Dijk header and then to a Crysencio Summerville strike, before fighting back on both occasions to earn a point. Despite the drama on the pitch, many watching at home said the broadcast picture made the game difficult to follow.

Viewers took to X to vent their frustration. One wrote: “Whats with the picture quality on @ITV? Absolutely awful. Glad I’m not a football fan because I couldn’t sit and watch a match like that.” Another compared the experience to an earlier era of television: “The @ITV picture quality of the World Cup is awful. Should have stayed in Salford and invested in some camera technology. It’s like watching on a 24 inch Granada rental in the early 80s.”

A third viewer said the quality had forced them to switch off entirely: “@ITV what’s with the poor picture quality of your World Cup games, had to turn off watching the Japan v Dutch game giving me a headache. Same on previous matches.” A fourth was equally blunt: “@itvfootball belongs in the bin. The picture quality is worse than a dial up stream 20 years ago. It’s literally making my eyes go funny.”

One viewer drew a pointed historical comparison: “Props to ITV for showing us lower resolution picture quality than the last time the World Cup was held in Mexico.”

ITV’s coverage is being presented from a studio in Brooklyn, New York, with the Manhattan skyline as a backdrop — a setup that has earned the broadcaster praise for its visual ambition. The studio team is led by Mark Pougatch, Laura Woods and Semra Hunter, with a pundit roster that includes Roy Keane, Ian Wright, Gary Neville, Patrick Vieira, Ange Postecoglou, Juan Mata and Emma Hayes, among others.

Prior to the tournament, ITV Director of Sport Niall Sloane described it as “the biggest FIFA World Cup in history” and said the broadcaster’s line-up was “second to none.” Sunday’s viewer reaction suggested the technical delivery had not matched those ambitions, at least for the Netherlands-Japan fixture.