Ian Wright excluded from ITV's Women's Euros coverage as Eni Aluko gets return

Eni Aluko will be a pundit for ITV during the Women’s European Championship. Ian Wright, however, will be absent from the channel’s coverage of the tournament.

The former players-turned-pundits clashed earlier this year when Aluko appeared to suggest that Wright had "blocked" opportunities for women in the media. Aluko told BBC Radio Four’s Woman’s Hour that the former Arsenal striker, who has regularly championed the women’s game, needed to be aware of the “finite opportunities for women.”

When asked about Wright's work on women's football, she said: "I think we need to be conscious, and we need to make sure that women are not being blocked from having a pathway into broadcasting in the women's game.

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"It's still new, it's still growing. There's a finite amount of opportunities and I think that men need to be aware of that."

Her comments were heavily criticised, leading to her issuing an apology to Wright via her Instagram story. Wright responded by saying he was left “very disappointed” by Aluko and that he “can’t accept” her apology.

He said on Instagram: “I’ve got to say I’m very disappointed by what Eni has said. She knows how I’ve helped her, supported her publicly.

“And I know the previous conversations she’s had with me and my management. So, for me, I’ve seen your apology on social media, but I can’t accept it. But I also want to move on from it.”

ITV backed Wright at the time, calling the 61-year-old “an incredible advocate and ally, and a brilliant broadcaster of women’s football.”

However, he will not be part of ITV’s coverage as England looks to defend the continental crown they won three years ago. That will be a surprise to some, given that Wright was used during England’s qualifying campaign and during the Lionesses' run to the 2023 World Cup final.

His absence is not believed to be related to his spat with Aluko, who will return to ITV duty after not being part of the channel's coverage of England's 5-0 win over Portugal in May.

In her apology to Wright, Aluko called him a “brilliant broadcaster and role model whose support for the women’s game has been significant.”

She added: “In my interview with Woman’s Hour this week, I was trying to make a broader point about the limited opportunities for women in football – whether that’s in coaching, broadcasting or commercial spaces – and the importance of creating more space for women to thrive on and off the pitch.

“But it was wrong for Ian’s name to be raised in that conversation, and for that I sincerely apologise. I’ve known and worked with Ian for many years and have nothing but love and respect for him.”

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