Gareth Bale has been handed a major new role in football ahead of the 2025/26 Premier League season.
Gareth Bale
Gareth Bale has landed new role with TNT Sports, replacing Rio Ferdinand
(Image: FIFA via Getty Images)
Welsh football icon Gareth Bale has secured a new role as a leading football pundit for TNT Sports for the upcoming season.
The ex-Real Madrid and Tottenham star has inked a deal with the broadcaster to be a key figure in its Premier League and Champions League coverage throughout the 2025/26 campaign, reports the Guardian.
Bale steps into the shoes of Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand, who departed TNT after a 12-year stint, choosing not to renew his contract at the end of the previous season.
Bale has previously lent his expertise to TNT's European football coverage, reportedly impressing the network's executives with his analysis of Spurs' Europa League final victory over United in May.
He will join Peter Crouch and Joe Cole on TNT's live Premier League broadcasts on Saturday lunchtimes, while Owen Hargreaves, Steve McManaman, Ally McCoist and Karen Carney are also part of TNT's punditry team for domestic and European matches.
This marks another significant step for Bale, who hung up his boots at the age of 33 following Wales' underwhelming performance at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar - the country's first World Cup appearance in 64 years.
A dazzling career saw him earn 111 caps for Wales, netting a record 41 goals for his nation and guiding them to three major tournaments. On the club front, he kick-started his career at Southampton before rising to prominence at Tottenham and securing a then-world record £85 million transfer to Real Madrid.
After securing five Champions Leagues and three La Liga titles during his stint in Spain, he concluded his career with an MLS Cup triumph with Los Angeles FC, hanging up his boots as one of the most decorated stars of the modern game with 18 honours to his name.
Bale's fresh role with TNT follows his revelation that he wished to purchase his hometown side, Cardiff City, with the former Wales captain forming part of a consortium that declared their interest in the League One outfit by submitting an official letter of intent to Bluebirds owner Vincent Tan.
It was extensively reported that a proposal of approximately £40million had been submitted, though numerous club sources refuted that assertion. Nevertheless, last month, Bale confirmed that a "brand new offer" had been submitted.
Speaking to Front Office Sports Today, the former striker said he believed a 'more than fair offer' has now been presented, as he explained he was awaiting the club's response.
"It's exciting news," he said at the time. "We have a brand new offer on the table, it's recently just gone in. We think it's a great offer, one that we're very happy with.
"We think it's very fair, if not more than fair, and it's something we hope the current owners will take serious. We'd love them to accept so we can take full control and get on with what we want to do and create Cardiff into a club that we know it can be."
He later disclosed to ESPN: "We are interested in trying to take over Cardiff. We have actually put in a great new offer that we hope we can get feedback (from). We think it's a very good offer for where the club is at.
"It's kind of out of our hands now and we are looking forward to seeing what develops with that."
Here at The Manchester Evening News, we are dedicated to bringing you the best Manchester United coverage and analysis.
Make sure you don't miss out on the latest United news by joining our free WhatsApp group. You can get all the breaking news and best analysis sent straight to your phone by clicking here to subscribe.
You can also subscribe to our free newsletter service. Click here to be sent all the day's biggest stories.
And, finally, if you would rather listen to our expert analysis then make sure to check out our Manchester is Red podcast, featuring The Samuel Luckhurst Show and The Midweek Debate. Our shows are available on all podcast platforms, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and you can also watch along on YouTube.
Get United transfer news and updates on WhatsApp!
Our team of Manchester United experts are on top of all the goings-on at Old Trafford for this week and beyond, and you can get the latest team news, injury updates, reaction and analysis along with inside information to your phone by joining our new free WhatsApp community. You can also join the 50,000 (and growing!) band of United fans who are following our WhatsApp Channel.
We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.