Infact
85 / 100
True United Kingdom

The text states that the first football match shown on television was Arsenal versus Arsenal Reserves, broadcast by the BBC, which started its television service in 1936. The match took place at Highbury on 16 September 1937.

Infact verdict: True (85/100).

The claims regarding the first televised football match and the start of the BBC television service are supported by historical evidence. The first televised football match was indeed a friendly between Arsenal and Arsenal Reserves on 16 September 1937, as confirmed by multiple reliable sources including Wikipedia and Guinness World Records. The BBC began its television service on 2 November 1936, which is corroborated by high-quality sources such as Wikipedia. These claims are well-documented and verified by authoritative sources.

August 14, 2026 Language: en 3 claims analyzed
How is this score determined? →

Individual claims

70
Mostly True Sports
The first football match ever shown on television was Arsenal versus Arsenal Reserves.
The claim is supported by multiple reliable sources, including Wikipedia and Guinness World Records, which confirm that the first televised football match was between Arsenal and Arsenal Reserves on 16 September 1937. AFP Fact Check rated a similar claim as 'Misleading' due to a different match being mentioned, but the core fact about Arsenal vs. Arsenal Reserves is accurate.
Fact Check Score 49
Fact Check Weight 40
Web Consensus Score 85
Web Consensus Weight 30
Source Quality Score 85
Source Quality Weight 15
Llm Reasoning Score 80
Llm Reasoning Weight 15
Llm Reasoning Score Raw 80
Weighted Total 70
Evidence Summary 1 fact-check match (AFP: Misleading), 3 web sources
96
True Media
The BBC started its television service in 1936.
The claim is confirmed by reliable sources such as Wikipedia, which state that the BBC Television Service began on 2 November 1936. This is a well-documented historical fact.
Fact Check Score None
Fact Check Weight 0
Web Consensus Score 95
Web Consensus Weight 40
Source Quality Score 95
Source Quality Weight 20
Llm Reasoning Score 95
Llm Reasoning Weight 40
Llm Reasoning Score Raw 95
Weighted Total 96
Evidence Summary 3 web sources confirm the claim
90
True Sports
The first televised football match was a friendly between Arsenal and Arsenal Reserves at Highbury on 16 September 1937.
The claim is supported by multiple reliable sources, including Wikipedia and Guinness World Records, confirming the match took place on 16 September 1937 at Highbury. This is a well-documented historical event.
Fact Check Score None
Fact Check Weight 0
Web Consensus Score 85
Web Consensus Weight 40
Source Quality Score 85
Source Quality Weight 20
Llm Reasoning Score 80
Llm Reasoning Weight 40
Llm Reasoning Score Raw 80
Weighted Total 90
Evidence Summary 3 web sources confirm the claim

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