In the course of the Euro 2024 draw, Switzerland found themselves in Group A alongside Scotland, Hungary, and hosts Germany, accompanied by indecent sounds.
This echoed a prior incident on the BBC before the FA Cup clash between Liverpool and Wolves in January.
YouTube personality Daniel Jarvis claimed responsibility for both pranks. He live-streamed himself on X (formerly Twitter), intermittently triggering a mobile phone to produce explicit noises during the Euro 2024 draw, streamed on the BBC from Hamburg, Germany.
Addressing his viewers, Jarvis admitted, “Listen, that was us. We got it in there, we put the phone in there, we rang it, sex noise at the Euro 2024 draw.” Giorgio Marchetti, the deputy general secretary of European football’s governing body, attempted to regain control, mentioning, “There is some noise here that… has now stopped. No noise anymore.”
England manager Gareth Southgate, when questioned about the incident, vaguely acknowledged hearing the noises while in the audience. He speculated it was likely a prank, but discerning the nature of the sounds proved challenging.
This wasn’t the first occurrence, as during FA Cup coverage, presenter Gary Lineker and pundits Paul Ince and Danny Murphy were taken aback by similar noises at Molineux Stadium.
A subsequent investigation in the studio revealed a strategically placed mobile phone, leading to the BBC issuing an apology to any offended viewers. Lineker, however, on X, commended the prank, deeming it a “good prank” and adding, “As sabotage goes, it was quite amusing.”
