WHEN GARY Lineker says goodbye to viewers after either Portsmouth or Cardiff lift the FA Cup he will bring the curtain down on live domestic football on the BBC for more than a year.
Today's final marks the last act of the BBC's four-year contract to show live FA Cup matches and England's home internationals, which it lost in controversial circumstances last March, leaving it with no live football next season.
A new deal with the Football League in England to show 10 live games from the Championship, plus the League Cup semi-finals and final, does not begin until autumn 2009.
While the station will show this summer's Euro 2008 tournament and its Match of the Day highlights deal has two more seasons to run, the loss of live domestic football will be keenly felt.
There are some at the BBC who still feel bitter about the manner in which ITV and Setanta won the rights. They claim the BBC was not given a chance to re-enter the bidding and was unfairly maligned when the FA hinted the presentation style of Lineker, Alan Hansen et al may have been a factor.
The BBC is generally considered to have done a good job in helping to rebuild the reputation of the FA Cup, drawing large audiences not only for games involving Premier League teams but also potential giant-killings.
As well as shelling out €345 million for its share of a joint €533 million deal with Setanta to show live FA Cup action and England internationals, ITV paid €200 million for live rights to the Champions League for another three years.
