‘Herding cattle’ – Zlatan and Thierry Henry’s World Cup co-host gives inside scoop on working with icons
Rebecca Lowe is living the American Dream.
The former talkSPORT phone op and breakfast show assistant producer moved to the United States back in 2013, where she became NBC Sports’ lead studio host for their Premier League coverage, as well as fronting their Summer and Winter Olympic Games coverage.
Fast-forward 13 years, and Lowe has since landed the role as FOX Sports’ leading anchor on their 2026 World Cup coverage.
Joining her on the panel are some soccer legends, including that of World Cup winner Thierry Henry, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and ex-USMNT defender, Alexi Lalas.
In an exclusive conversation with The S Word powered by talkSPORT’s Will Gavin and Master Tesfatsion, Lowe opened up on what it has been like behind the scenes working with such big – and notable – characters.
“I do feel sometimes like I’m herding cattle,” Lowe joked. “They are absolutely brilliant in every way. Honestly, we have so much fun.
“It’s probably the most unpredictable show, or panel, that I’ve ever had across my entire 25-year career, but sometimes I think in life you need that. You need to be kept on your toes, and boy, do they keep me on my toes.”
Lowe’s days now are certainly far removed from those spent in the talkSPORT studios as a young 21-year-old having gotten her first foot in the door of the industry, calling up show guests and making teas for the likes of the legendary Alan Brazil and Mike Parry.
“I love them to pieces. We connected, all of us, as a four,” Lowe continued of working with Henry, Ibrahimovic, and Lalas. “We really bonded straight away, and then you’re spending hours [together]. We are on air ten hours a day really.
“And then you’ve got hair and makeup, and meetings beforehand. So you’re really with each other 12 hours a day, day after day after day.
“There are many, many moments where I just sort of sit in a meeting and I look around and there’s Thierry and Alexi, and there’s Zlatan, and I’m just like, ‘This is a little surreal for me. This is a bit mad.'”
Behind the scenes of *that* viral video of Henry and Zlatan juggling the football
Various clips of FOX’s studio talent have gone viral throughout the 48-team summer tournament, including that of when Lalas accidentally blurted out an X-rated insult in the direction of actor and comedian, James Corden – a phrase seemingly lost in translation State-side.
But, sometimes it’s the simplicity of those interactions between colleagues off-air which gain the most reach.
For example, a clip was posted to Ibrahimovic’s official social media accounts of he and Henry showcasing off their skills with a football in full suits with ‘A Little Less Conversation’ by Elvis Presley vs. JXL used as the backing track.
Since its posting on June 19, it has amassed over 77.2 million views.
“It wasn’t planned. There was a ball in there because we were filming something and they just started [juggling the football],” Lowe said, revealing that it was Ibrahimovic’s social media guy Pietro, who picked up the camera in that moment and started filming.
“They were just free-styling and messing about. I was also like ‘Rebecca, get out of the way, you do not want to be involved in this situation because at the beginning, which you didn’t see, it was sort of me, Alexi and them two.
“And they passed me the ball, and I’m in four-inch heels. I do not need to be in this… I passed them the ball back and I got out of the way and I let them do their thing.
“But, it is mesmerizing, and how you can be in your 40s, in a suit with non-football boots on, and do that so casually and effortlessly. It’s insane.”
FOX continue to set viewership records
FOX took a gamble when they paid $485million to secure the English-language broadcast rights for the World Cup co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
But the numbers don’t lie.
Data from Nielsen has showcased that the network has reaped significant dividends with record viewership, with the first 16 group matches alone seeing a 128 percent increase on that of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
A large part of that has been down to the studio crew’s offering, with elite-level football analysis combined with that of personality-driven sports television.
In some ways, it is comparable with that of the NBA‘s ‘Inside the NBA’ show with Shaquille O’Neal, Charles Barkley and co, as well as CBS’ UEFA Champions League Today show – hosted by fellow Brit Kate Scott – along with Henry, Micah Richards and Jamie Carragher.
But on-screen, there has appeared to be some tension between Lalas and Zlatan in-particular, with the former Swedish striker having made a myriad of public swipes at his American colleague, using him as the butt of some jokes.
However, Lowe revealed that it is all in jest and not as serious as it has been portrayed to be by media outlets and social media.
“There is no tension, nothing. We’re laughing our heads off at all of this,” she revealed exclusively to talkSPORT.
“Everyone respects everyone hugely. And if people want to watch and actually listen to what the guys say to each other and how they work off each other, they would see that.
“But we don’t live in that world, do we? We live in the clickable world, the, ‘Oh, that might mean something, so let’s clip it up and put it everywhere,’ and then everyone piles in. …
“It’s a strange old narrative, I tell you. When you’re right in the middle of a thunderstorm, and I’m right in the middle of it with them all day, everyday, it just doesn’t exist.”
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All 104 games at the 2026 World Cup this summer will be live on talkSPORT, talkSPORT 2 and the talkSPORT app.
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