Laura Woods to spearhead all-female presenting team at new Premier League channel
Laura Woods will be working for TNT Sports next season.
PA
Laura Woods is set to lead TNT Sports' coverage of the Champions League next season, with the new channel announcing an all-female presenting team.
The former Sky and ITV presenter is leaving talkSPORT, with Jeff Stelling set to replace her.
TNT plan on Lynsey Hipgrave presenting weekend Premier League coverage, while Reshmin Chowdhury is set to anchor Champions League matches with Woods as the lead presenter.
Jules Breach will head up coverage of the Europa League, while Ally McCoist will arrive as a pundit instead of a presenter.
Laura Woods will be working with Reshmin Chowdhury next season
PA
With the BT regime drawing to a close, more changes are being made behind the scenes ahead of the new season.
Jake Humphrey announced his departure from BT Sport back in May, with touchline reporter Des Kelly joining him out the door.
Darren Fletcher and Adam Summerton are primed to continue.
And former footballers Rio Ferdinand, Peter Crouch, Joe Cole, Rachel Brown-Finnis, Owen Hargreaves, Steve McManaman, Joleon Lescott, Michael Owen, Paul Scholes and Robbie Savage are all staying on board.
TNT are charging £29,99 a month for their package next season.
And fans will have to fork out even more for Sky and Amazon subscriptions if they're to watch the majority of matches next season.
Woods recently spoke to The Sun and refused to shed light on whether she'd be working for TNT Sports or not.
“I know, I’ve seen a lot of articles, but I haven’t signed anything,” she said.
“There are a couple of offers, but I’ve got a glorious month off now where I can sit down and start planning the next things. I don’t want to rush into anything.
"I’ve never been able to have that privilege in my life before. Never. I’ve always been 100 miles per hour in my career.
"I used to have this work ethic of taking absolutely everything, because I knew that it would teach me something.
"I didn’t care what it was, I would do it, and it was brilliant. It definitely got me to where I am now. But now, I have earned the right to take a step back and think: ‘What is right for me next?’
“I’d really love to get healthy. I want to be able to exercise more and take my dog for long walks.
"I’m just tired of feeling tired. I want to give my family and friends more of my attention.
"I really want to prioritise that part of my life more. I’d like to have a bit more of a routine for myself and think about what’s next, and I want to have a clear head to be able to do that.
”On women's football growing, she added: “I’ve always found women’s football to be really accessible. I love that about it," she said.
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Laura Woods and Jules Breach will be working for TNT Sports next season
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"Sometimes in sport, we get a bit separated from the superstars and I don’t feel like we have that separation in the women’s game.
"When you go to the games, it’s really different to men’s football. It’s quite family-orientated and the atmosphere in general is really fun and welcoming."
She continued: “There wasn’t a girls’ football team when I was at school — if you wanted to play football, you would tag along with the boys, and that wasn’t always allowed.
“I was part of a rugby team that was mixed, but I was one of the only girls in the club.
"You always felt a little bit like you’re playing a boys’ game, rather than your own game."