The BBC confirms that the sporting issue has been shelved

The BBC has confirmed that TV sports quiz show The Sports Question has been postponed after more than 50 years of broadcast.

The company said production of the show had been halted, and that “difficult decisions” were necessary.

But a BBC spokesman insisted this was “not the final whistle” and that the program may return in the future.

The first episode of the BBC One program was broadcast in 1970, presented by David Vine.

The Sports Question didn't hit screens for two years in the 1970s, but has been in continuous production since 1978.

It was one of the most popular shows of the 1980s when David Colman was the host – with Princess Anne appearing as one of the guests in 1987 attracting the highest ever viewing figures of 19 million.

Former tennis player Sue Parker took over in 1997 and spent 24 years as host, before being replaced by actor Paddy McGuinness in 2021.

The Sports Issue also underwent a revamp, with non-sporting celebrities invited to appear as guests.

The team's most recent captains have been Great Britain hockey star Sam Quick and former England rugby union international Ugo Mooney.

Past captains include rugby union players Matt Dawson and Sir Bill Beaumont, cricketers Ian Botham and Phil Tufnell, and former footballers Ally McCoist and Emlyn Hughes.

The BBC said: “Due to inflation and funding challenges, difficult decisions need to be made and therefore The Sports Question is not currently in production.”

It is understood that the decision to halt production was linked to low viewing figures and declining audiences on iPlayer.

Audience numbers fell to less than a million last year, after regularly reaching four to five million under Parker.

Reacting to the news, Sir Bill, who has been a captain on the program for 14 years, said: “I still enjoy the program. I think it's a shame it's ending now, it's sad because it's the end of an era.”

“It's amazing how many people come up to me now when I pass through railway stations and things like that [say] “I'm watching it with my dad.”

A company spokesperson insisted that the show “has not been canceled – it is not in production at this time.”

He cited as an example another game show, The Weakest Link, which had gaps in production.

He added, “The sports issue will not appear on any other channel.” “It is the intellectual property of the BBC.”

The decision to bench Question of Sport comes just weeks after the BBC announced that its flagship motoring show Top Gear would not return “for the foreseeable future”.

The BBC said in a statement in November that it had “decided to discontinue the UK show”.

Top Gear presenter Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff was seriously injured in a crash while filming the show last year.