Overview
- ITV pulled both Coronation Street and Emmerdale from their usual Wednesday evening slots on Wednesday 24 June to show live coverage of Switzerland v Canada.
- The soaps returned briefly on Thursday 25 June as hour‑long episodes with Emmerdale at 8pm and Coronation Street at 9pm.
- ITV did not schedule either soap for Friday 26 June because the channel showed the Norway v France World Cup match instead.
- Viewers have voiced strong frustration on social media, Coronation Street and ITV posted acknowledgements of the changes, and ITVX continues to offer episodes on demand from the morning of broadcast.
- The disruption highlights a vulnerability in ITV’s January ‘power hour’ plan of back‑to‑back half‑hour soaps and is disrupting regular viewing for shows that are running major storylines this week, increasing the chance that audiences will shift permanently to streaming or complain to the broadcaster.