Wimbledon bosses say they were surprised at Fifa’s decision to schedule the World Cup final to clash with the men’s singles final. The timing conflict on July 15 means the tennis will be broadcast on BBC2 for the first time. While the tennis match on Centre Court will start on BBC1, the broadcaster said it would move over to the sister channel when the football coverage starts at 3pm. England’s World Cup quarter-final against Sweden will clash with the middle Saturday at Wimbledon.
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While Wimbledon organisers have no plans to screen the football anywhere in the grounds, they expressed their bewilderment at the footballing body’s scheduling decision. Mick Desmond, commercial and media director at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC), said there were also no plans to change the Wimbledon timetable, and discussions had been held with Fifa. He added: “It’s slightly surprising Fifa had the idea of kick-off at four o’clock. It’s not something they’ve done in the past, but that’s the decision. “You know, our tournament (final) always starts at two o’clock – we’ll start at two o’clock.” “There was dialogue (between Wimbledon and Fifa) and there was dialogue between the broadcasters. “I think broadcasters who’ve got both sets of rights were concerned. At the end of the day, Fifa decided to do that.”
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He said if England get to the final, “then it’s going to be a great sporting Sunday”. A Fifa spokesman said: “We got the question a long time ago and we answered the question a long time ago. “The kick-off times for the Fifa World Cup were set in co-operation with a range of stakeholders and taking into account a number of aspects such as the global broadcast market and feasibility for the fans – both in terms of attending the matches and reaching a wide TV audience. “Following those discussions, it was decided on December 3 2015 that the 2018 Fifa World Cup final match will take place at 6pm (Moscow time). “I understand now people are waking up (to the clash), but the decision was already made.”
Roger Federer’s epic Wimbledon final encounter with Rafael Nadal in 2008 lasted almost five hours Credit: Lewis Whyld/POOL Wire