Sky Sports pundits Roy Keane and Micah Richards have swapped their usual studio attire for Victorian gentlemen’s costumes as part of Sky Bet’s new “Game’s Back” campaign, which pokes fun at modern football debates by showing supporters have complained about changes to the sport for well over a century.
Roy Keane and Micah Richards have dressed as Victorian gentlemen for Sky Bet’s new “Game’s Back” campaign, which officially launched on 7 August ahead of the new Premier League season. The Sky Sports punditry duo donned period costumes to revisit football’s earliest days, watching the action from the terraces and demonstrating their keepy-uppy skills with a traditional pigskin ball. The campaign plays on the familiar “game’s gone” phrase often used by supporters lamenting how the sport has changed, touching on everything from VAR to players refusing to celebrate against former clubs.
A journey through football’s history
The campaign takes Keane and Richards on a journey through different eras of the sport, beginning in Victorian times, shortly after the creation of the Football Association in 1863, when the modern rules of football first began to take shape. During this period, footballs were typically made from animal bladders covered in leather, making them considerably heavier than today’s synthetic match balls, particularly once wet, a detail reflected in the pair’s use of a traditional pigskin ball for their keepy-uppy display.
The wider point of the campaign is that debates over the direction of football are far from new: supporters have been questioning changes to the game for more than 150 years. In one light-hearted moment, Richards is seen shushing his notoriously outspoken punditry partner while the pair watch from the stands, a nod to Keane’s well-known tendency to question developments in the modern game.
What Keane and Richards said
Reflecting on the experience, Keane said: “One thing about football history is that people have always questioned changes to the game, but it’s funny looking back at some of the things we’d never want to lose now. We had good fun bringing those moments to life.”
Richards, who has become a regular fixture alongside Keane in Sky Sports’ football coverage since joining the broadcaster in 2020, echoed the sentiment, saying: “Football fans love a debate and that’s never going to change.”
Sky Bet’s rationale for the campaign
Harry Phillips, Sky Bet’s Marketing Director, explained the thinking behind the campaign, noting how deeply the phrase “game’s gone” has become embedded in football culture. “Game’s Gone is a phrase that has engrained itself in football culture and beyond,” he said. “Yet even though we all love to moan about the game, it’s never been more universally popular and when push comes to shove, it’s the incredible moments of football culture, both on and off the pitch that keeps us coming back.”
He added: “We believe football always has and always will create moments no fan can resist. And at Sky Bet, we champion those iconic moments of football and fandom by giving our customers more ways to get in on the action.”
Timed for the new season
The launch of the campaign coincides with the countdown to the 2026–27 Premier League season, a period that typically sees broadcasters and sponsors roll out new promotional activity ahead of the opening weekend. The new season is set to begin on Friday, 21 August, with reigning champions Arsenal hosting newly-promoted Coventry City.
