SPOTY IS SET FOR A MIDWEEK DATE

THE BBC are set to move Sports Personality of the Year from Sunday to midweek to avoid a clash with the World Cup final. The annual awards show has been held on a Sunday evening in December for 39 of the last 40 years. But the winter World Cup has given Beeb bosses a headache, with the final in Qatar scheduled for December 18 — the date SPOTY would have been held. As a result, the programme is set to be pushed back until after the tournament. The BBC say talks over this year’s date are still ongoing, but Sportsmail understands it is likely to be a midweek night before Christmas. Although the World Cup final kicks off at 3pm UK time and would finish before SPOTY’s usual 8pm slot, it would have left the show’s producers little time to prepare. Ronnie O’Sullivan is the current favourite for the main award, won by Emma Raducanu last year.