Mark Crossley and Laura Coombs commentate Manchester City v Brighton H.A. from BBC Radio 5 Live

The League Cup match between Manchester City and Brighton H.A. takes place on Saturday 28 October 2026, with kick-off scheduled for 19:30 UK time. The headline commentary comes from Mark Crossley as main commentator, supported by Laura Coombs as co-commentator, broadcasting over BBC Radio 5 Live and a range of companion channels.

The BBC also runs a Sports Extra feed alongside BBC Radio Manchester, the BBC Sounds app and audio coverage on BBC Sport Online. For those tracking the wider world of football, Maz Farookhi reports over BBC Radio 5 Live as well, bringing coverage from the BBC World Service. Coverage is also provided by Sky Sports News on HD, and by talkSPORT 2 with the talkSPORT App.

The BBC commentary team

Mark Crossley is the main commentator for this match. He is a football coach born on 16 June 1969, and a former Wales international footballer. Mark Crossley has been a long-standing figure in football media, and has featured across panels and podcasts covering club stories and playing history.

Laura Coombs joins as co-commentator. She is a midfielder from Gravesend, and was awarded her first senior card in October 2015 during England's trip to the Yongchuan Tournament in China. Her role as a player for the England national team underlines her involvement at club and national level.

The City+ team

Manchester City is backed by the City+ platform and its YouTube channel on Man City. The presenter here is Faraaz Ghaffur, known as FG, who is a content creator and streamer. He was featured in the South Asian Heritage Month 2025 interview, where he explained that his love of City comes from following the club his Dad, Tarique, supports. FG was also named among the male finalist candidates for Best Content Creator in the 2026 Football Content Awards, and is signed to Manchester City Esports.

The City+ lineup also includes the pundit Steve Howey, an English football coach and former professional footballer born on 26 October 1971. He has been a sports radio presenter and, at club level, made more than 300 appearances for the England national team. Two additional reporters round out the City+ coverage: Jack Mumford and Neil Leigh.

Additional coverage

The match is also carried by Anton Toloui, reporting over Sky Sports News on HD, and by Ian Danter as main commentator with Michael Gray as co-commentator over talkSPORT 2 and the talkSPORT App. A Recast of Manchester City coverage is also available for those following the replay.

With kick-off at 19:30 UK time, the BBC feeds and City+ channels offer several ways to follow the Manchester City v Brighton H.A. League Cup match. For more on the presenter behind the City+ stream, the FG interview on the Manchester City news site is a useful reference.

Article generated: 28 October 2026, 19:33 GMT