Manchester City’s Vincent Kompany will join the BBC punditry team for Euro 2016, providing expert analysis from the Paris studio.
The Belgium captain, who has played 70 times for his country, was ruled out of the tournament with a thigh injury, but will travel to France to work with the BBC team instead.
Kompany joins the impressive BBC studio line-up that is led by Gary Lineker and includes Alan Shearer, Rio Ferdinand, Thierry Henry and Gianluca Vialli.
“I am extremely disappointed not to be in France with the Belgium team, but to be there with the BBC will be the next best thing,” said Kompany.
“There is a huge amount of anticipation for the tournament and I’m really looking forward to working alongside Gary and the team throughout the competition.”
Kompany will be in the studio on 12 June to see World Champions Germany start their campaign with their match against Ukraine, and he will also see Ronaldo’s entrance into the tournament, as a guest for Portugal v Austria on 14 June.
Philip Bernie, BBC Head of TV Sport, said: “We have enjoyed working with Vincent as a guest on Match Of The Day, and have been extremely impressed with the insight he offers. As a current player, he is very close to the game and has played against a number of the players and countries involved in Euro 2016. He will be the perfect addition to our impressive studio line-up, which already boasts an outstanding array of pundits, led by the best sports presenter on TV.”
He’ll also provide expert analysis for US broadcaster ESPN, as well as being inside the stadium for the Belgium games.
The BBC team also contains a number of other former internationals, including Martin Keown, Jermaine Jenas, Danny Murphy, Robbie Savage, John Hartson, Dean Saunders, Chris Brunt, Neil Lennon, Gerry Armstrong, Mark Lawrenson, Kevin Kilbane and Jens Lehmann.
Additional presentation comes from inside the home nation camps and stadiums from Gabby Logan, Jason Mohammad, Stephen Watson, Eilidh Barbour, Dan Walker and Mark Chapman.
The BBC will broadcast 26 live games, including the most anticipated of all the group stage matches as England meet Wales on 16 June. There will also be the opening matches for Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, as well as the stand-out game between Belgium and Italy.
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