Sky Sports News presenter leaves channel after 27 years as popular show gets cancelled

Veteran anchor Rob Wotton offered a heartfelt goodbye to his audience as he announced his departure from Sky Sports.

With 27 years under his belt with the broadcaster, he most recently acted as the face of The Football Show. But it's been confirmed Sky has made the call to pull the plug on the programme.

Wotton fronted the staple feature every Monday, where he provided in-depth analysis of the previous weekend's football action. diehard Wotton anchored the show where pundits like Stephen Warnock and Sue Smith provided insights into matches, debates and top-tier plays.

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'Ref Watch' also became a popular segment as ex- referee Dermot Gallagher became a key part of the show. Not only will the show be cancelled, but Wotton too is stepping down from the channel altogether. Having first joined Sky in 1998, he contributed to various coverage across different sports but found his home on .

'The Football Show' was Wotton's primary role in recent times, however, as fans came to appreciate him in a more prominent position. His last appearance as host came on Monday when the Blues fan expressed a poignant farewell to his viewers.

"It's been an absolute pleasure. I came here in my 20s and I thought I was only coming for a couple of weeks," said Wotton, per . "And look, they haven't been able to get rid of me. I keep turning up, maybe one day they'll pay me!"

Along with his work at Sky, Wotton has performed in commentary roles for Chelsea in the past. This has even extended to him acting as narrator on the club's DVDs over the years.

And he was visibly elated as on the final day of the season. This guaranteed the club a place in next season's , much to Wotton's pleasure.

Colleagues Warnock and Smith also paid homage, while Sky staff and friends gave Wotton a standing ovation off-camera. Wotton joins a growing roster of familiar faces bidding farewell to Sky.

Jeff Stelling, Jimmy Bullard and John Fendley have all departed from the broadcaster, along with several notable reporters, including Geoff Shreeves. The Football Show is the latest initiative to be axed by executives, following in the footsteps of Soccer AM.

The reported the decision was made as Sky bosses aim to draw in a younger audience. The broadcaster has already phased out various traditional elements in favour of YouTubers and other types of influencers.

However, certain staff are reportedly "bewildered" by the latest casualty. Sky Sports is currently undergoing a "restructure" that will see seven reporters and presenters exit.

Sources told The Mail: "the changes are aimed at making them more agile and able to concentrate on breaking news stories across platforms." However, Gallagher's Ref Watch will continue in a new format elsewhere.

Former boss was known to be a keen follower of The Football Show. And it's understood he particularly appreciated the coverage provided by ex-official Gallagher in his analysis of refereeing incidents.