Soccer AM brings the curtain down on popular Saturday morning show after almost 30 years on air
Soccer AM closes the curtain on the hit Saturday morning show after nearly 30 years on the air…with comedian Jack Whitehall warning about his swearing and rapper Stormzy speaking his mind in the parking challenge!
- Soccer AM performed its last show on Saturday morning after 28 years on the air
- Whitehall, Stormzy and Stephen Graham joined Jimmy Bullard and ‘Fenners’
- The show paid homage to iconic moments throughout its 90-minute broadcast
Soccer AM held its last ever show on Saturday after it was canceled after 28 years on screens.
In a show filled with iconic guests and segments, Mark Fendley and Jimmy Bullard waved goodbye as they celebrated nearly three decades of memories.
Stormzy, Jack Whitehall and Stephen Graham joined Bullard – who admitted he was nervous at the start of the program – and ‘Fenners’ on the show, with Tubes branded ‘Mr Soccer AM’ by Fendley, who has played Premier League interviewed title winning captain Ilkay Gundogan.
“A very warm welcome to the last Soccer AM of the season and the last ever,” said Fendley as the show began. “28 years of madness come to an end.”
He then joked that the show had blown their remaining budget on the three guests, as comedian Whitehall admitted: “I love this show so much, I’ve watched it grow up and it’s so nice to be here to celebrate the last show .”
Jimmy Bullard hosted the last Saturday morning Soccer AM show ever after 28 years
Tim Lovejoy (left) and Helen Chamberlain (right) were closely associated with the show which began in 1995
Both Graham and Whitehall wore ice packs and explained they suffered injuries during rehearsal for the show.
The group – after several cuts to Whitehall swearing during the opening segment – moved to the John Arne Riise Arena arena for their final challenge, featuring more iconic clips from the show’s history.
“We’re out in the Riise for one last edition of You Know The Drill Live,” Fendley began. ‘Many a goal has been scored in one venue or another, many a goal kicked and many a ball lost for £30 a pop. Many memories made it almost impossible to pick a favorite.”
They did anyway, with clips of Bullard hitting the ‘top box’ and Serge Pizzorno’s iconic volley.
What followed was Stormzy slashing his lines in the volley challenge, before Whitehall blasted off to perform in Swansea.
A tribute was also paid to Tubes, real name Peter Dale, with his mother in the audience, as the veteran showed his emotions during his ‘One Question Only’ segment.
Bullard admitted that one of his favorite moments was when Fenners played Barry while another clip was shown, in which the former Hull midfielder told his co-host, “You’re so good, I don’t want to send you away.”
The atmosphere was awkward at times as the presenters tried to keep morale up after Mail Sport revealed the show was axed.
Formed in 1995 on the back of the mid-90s music and football boom, it combined the pair and launched the careers of a number of bands.
Features including parking and crossbar challenges captured the imagination, while Soccer AM was also responsible for a campaign to introduce a gold star on England’s shirt in honor of victory at the 1966 World Cup.
The two presenters most closely associated with the show, Tim Lovejoy and Helen Chamberlain, left in 2007 and 2017 respectively. The latter hosts are Fendley and former Wigan, Fulham and Peterborough playmaker Jimmy Bullard.
Sky Sports Managing Director Jonathan Licht said: ‘We would like to thank the Soccer AM team for their professionalism during a difficult period. We would also like to thank them, and all their former colleagues, for their contribution to Sky Sports over three great decades.”