Footballers Toby Alderweireld, Robbie Keane, Ashley Young, and former Tottenham manager Thomas Frank will join Match of the Day as pundits and BBC Sport will launch four new YouTube formats for the new men’s football season.

The BBC Football YouTube channel will house the quartet of new shows including FANS², The Truth About Football, Golden Goal and Football Hub.

There will be a focus on fan experience with the addition of the BBC Sport Fan Collective, which will bring together supporters representing all 20 Premier League clubs.

“Football means something different to every fan, and this season BBC Sport is putting those fans even more firmly at the heart of the game,” said BBC director of Sport Alex Kay-Jelski.

“We’re bringing together the unrivalled expertise of former players and managers with the passion, personality and perspectives of supporters to create a richer football experience wherever and however audiences follow the game.”

BBC Radio 5 Live will broadcast live commentary of 209 Premier League matches this season, as well as coverage from the Champions League, Scottish Premiership, FA Cup, men’s League Cup and international matches.

As well as Match of the Day’s Premier League coverage, BBC will broadcast two matches from each round of the FA Cup as well as one Bundesliga match every week on BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app.

Highlights and clips will also be available from La Liga, Serie A, the Europa League and Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland’s international games.

Kelly Somer’s The Football Interview will continue on BBC iPlayer, BBC Football YouTube and the BBC Sport website and app, as well as on BBC One every Saturday from 12:45 BST.

Red Bull Formula 1 driver Isack Hadjar is set to miss this weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort with a wrist injury.

It emerged on Wednesday morning that the 21-year-odl had picked up the injury ahead of the first race back from F1’s summer break — with sources, speaking on condition of anonymity to protect relationships, confirming to The Athletic that he was set to miss the weekend.

Red Bull is yet to make an announcement on the matter, but Hadjar’s absence would most likely open the door for Liam Lawson, who drives for the sister Racing Bulls team, to step in alongside Max Verstappen.

Lawson moving up would then allow for Yuki Tsunoda, who lost his Red Bull seat to Hadjar at the end of last year, to return to the grid by slotting in at Racing Bulls next to rookie Arvid Lindblad. Tsunoda serves as Red Bull’s reserve driver.

As recently as Monday, Hadjar was anticipated to be racing this weekend, with Red Bull promoting his special edition helmet for the final edition of the Dutch GP on social media.

The 21-year-old scored the only podium of his F1 career to date at Zandvoort last year during his rookie season, when he was driving for Racing Bulls.

The performance was the peak of Hadjar’s strong rookie season, which prompted Red Bull to promote him to its senior squad for 2026 alongside Verstappen in place of the struggling Tsunoda.

Tsunoda himself had got the nod at Red Bull in the early part of last year after the team axed Lawson just two races into the season due to his on-track struggles.

Lawson spent much of last year rebuilding his form before embarking on an solid campaign to date at Racing Bulls, where he has scored points in eight of the first 11 races, including best finishes of sixth in Canada and Great Britain.

Should Lawson get the call-up to drive for Red Bull this weekend, it would give him a chance to compete further up the order in a more competitive car and build on his impressive start to the year.

Importantly, a strong performance would also go some way to prove how much has changed for Lawson since his ill-fated two-race stint alongside Verstappen in early 2025.

After finishing fourth, the 2025-26 season boiled down to a play-off final against Almeria.

Malaga had one of the smallest budgets in the division and had spent just £325,000 on permanent transfers since 2020. Almeria spent more than £10m that season alone.

After a goalless home draw in the first leg, hundreds of fans lined motorway bridges heading out of the city to wave the team on their way to Almeria.

It was a sight symptomatic of the strong bond forged between the team and its fanbase in recent years. It became a common occurrence for fans to welcome the team bus to the stadium with flags and pyrotechnics.

A song adopted by the club’s Fondo Sur ultras, borrowed from the ultras scene in Morocco, became the soundtrack of the season. ‘Es la Vida Loca’ – the crazy life.

Malaga’s average attendance last season was the 11th-highest in the country, but only a few hundred tickets were available for the game in Almeria.

Yet when Chupe steered Malaga in front before Larrubia curled in a stunning second, the whole fanbase did too – kit supplier Hummel incorporated the names of all 26,550 season-ticket holders into a special one-off strip.

The 2-1 victory sparked mass celebrations in Malaga. After partying all weekend, an estimated 185,000 fans lined the streets to give the team a triumphant welcome.

“It was a once-in-a-generation moment. Many young fans had never seen Malaga play in La Liga,” says Fernandez.

“An entire generation had grown up after the club’s Champions League years knowing little more than financial turmoil, sporting disappointment and uncertainty surrounding the club they loved.”

After a second night of partying, several players took to social media to challenge fans to meet them at 07:00 on Monday at a roundabout in a western suburb. Hundreds answered the call.

“That connection between the squad and the fans was one of the defining features of the campaign,” adds Fernandez.

“It helped create a sense that everyone, from the dressing room to the streets of the city, was pulling in the same direction.”

Given their financial constraints, Malaga’s preparations for the top flight have been low-key.

Several important players have renewed their contracts, while sporting director Loren Juarros has made some astute loan signings.

Promotion winner Carlos Dotor returned on loan from Celta Vigo, while £256,000 was spent on loaning winger Juan Cruz from Leganes.

Malaga fans know their club are favourites for relegation.

They open the season with daunting trips to Atletico Madrid (Wednesday, 20:00 BST kick-off) and Real Madrid, but after what they have been through that should not faze them.

“Malaga’s story is beautifully convoluted, with plenty of plot twists and the most enchanting ending,” says Sabatel.

“From now on, we can only enjoy.”