Kelly Cates

Available for 29 days

Sports presenter and Match Of The Day host Kelly Cates joins Vernon Kay to choose ten songs that have soundtracked her life, ahead of leading the BBC's coverage of the men's 2026 World Cup. Kelly tells Vernon about growing up as the daughter of legendary footballer Kenny Dalglish, the impact his fame had on their family and how she never thought she would work in football until an opportunity presented itself after university. She also talks about her memories of witnessing huge footballing moments like Liverpool's Champions League victory in 2005 as well as an unusual connection between her family and the band Simple Minds. Plus, her thoughts on England and Scotland's chances at the World Cup and what factors could make the difference across the six weeks. Kelly was born in 1975 in Glasgow, at a time when her father, Kenny Dalglish, was playing for Celtic. The family then moved to Southport when Kenny moved to Liverpool. After a mathematics degree at Glasgow, she became one of the first-ever presenters on the brand new Sky Sports News in 1998. Since then she's built a career to become one of the most respected sports broadcasters in the UK, now part of the team fronting the iconic Match of the Day. This summer she is one of the presenters leading the TV and radio coverage on the BBC of the men's 2026 football World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada - a tournament that will feature both England and Scotland. Listen to Tracks Of My Years on BBC Sounds, and watch Vernon's conversations on BBC iPlayer, just search for 'Tracks Of My Years'. A BBC Audio production for BBC Radio 2.