Football journalist & broadcaster
Rob Shepherd is a highly experienced football journalist who has held senior roles at major national newspapers, and now works as a broadcaster and pundit. He is a champion of independent sports journalism.
As a freelancer, Rob covers a wide range of sports, media and culture in writing, podcasts, content creation and consultancy.
Did I not like that?
Career
Rob Shepherd is best known for his previous work as a senior football writer and editor in UK national newspapers, including chief football writer at Today, senior football writer at the Daily Mail, as well as sports editor at the Daily Express and Sunday Express.
He has also appeared as a pundit/presenter on broadcast outlets including BBC Sport, Sky Sports and talkSPORT.
In an increasingly AI driven age he is a champion of independent journalism and regularly contributes to sports podcasts, and writes articles for several online outlets, as well as maintaining a Substack platform.
Highlights
Known in the industry as ‘Shep’, Rob retains an extensive "contacts book" and still has the ear of many influential figures across the spectrum of the game.
In the nineties and noughties Rob was seen in the company of the likes of Terry Venables, Paul Gascoigne, Vinnie Jones and David Beckham. He attended five World Cups and covered England at the big tournaments, as a major player of the press corps, as well as reporting on all major domestic and European football pre and post Premier League and Champions League eras.
One of the most memorable episodes of his career came during the early 1990s. Rob was present at a notorious press conference when he questioned England manager Graham Taylor's team selections ahead of a vital World Cup qualifier against Holland in Rotterdam. The exchange was captured in the fly-on-the-wall documentary An Impossible Job, aka Do I Not Like That, and the clip became one of the most remembered moments in football journalism history.
He also broke the exclusive stories that Sir Bobby Robson would quit England at Italia 90, Venables after Euro '96, and confirmed Beckham would join Real Madrid from Manchester United.
He remains a respected figure in British sports journalism circles and is a member of the Football Writers' Association.
Recent articles
Events at the London Stadium feel like a rubicon moment
The day the Premier League gave the green light to introduce VAR I waved a red flag and warned it would become VARcical.
On so many occasions since 2019 it has been just that. Now it has gone beyond farce or shambles. It feels criminal.
West Ham’s last gasp “equaliser” against Arsenal on Sunday is likely to have finally condemned the Hammers to relegation and delivered the title to the Gunners.”
Falling in love at Valentine’s Park
It was at Itchycoo Park where I first got high on cricket – thanks to Keith Boyce. The mythical place of The Small Faces’ classic single was actually Valentine’s Park in Ilford, one of several urban grounds that Essex used to play at back in the day.
Boyce’s nickname in the game was ‘Stingray’ after the opening sequence of the kids’ TV show of the day which declared: “Anything can happen in the next half an hour”.
A tribute to the West Ham legend Billy Bonds
Rob Shepherd pays tribute to the West Ham legend who has passed away at the age of 79.
If you asked AI to construct a player who embodied the true meaning of the West Ham way, what it means to those of us who have claret and blue running through our veins, then it should be Billy Bonds every bit as much as Bobby Moore. Bobby, was, is and will forever be a West Ham deity, but Bonzo represents the body, the blood, sweat and tears of its Christ in the Bubbles faith.
40 years of football knowledge
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With Harry
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With Figo
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With John
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With Gary
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With Gareth
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With the Big One
Contact
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