World Cup commentators are some of the best in their field when it comes to football, but that’s not always the case when it’s time to identify celebs in the stands – as the BBC’s Guy Mowbray showed.
The sports presenter, 54, mistook American pop star Pharrell Williams for A$AP Rocky during last night’s World Cup final, with many viewers at home picking up on his unfortunate blunder.
Spain took on Argentina during yesterday’s (Sunday 19 July) tense final, which saw the former claim the World Cup for the second time after winning 1-0 in extra time. It proved to be a star-studded event, with the likes of Jay-Z, Beyonce, Drake and Dua Lipa spotted in the crowd as well as comedian Will Ferrell, Dune star Timothée Chalamet and his girlfriend Kylie Jenner.
UK commentators at the FIFA World Cup Final hilariously mistook Pharrell Williams for A$AP Rocky:“I think that’s AKA Rocky—or A$AP Rocky, sorry.” pic.twitter.com/zEHcZzcPDs
— JIZZY 🦅 (@Jizzydey4u) July 20, 2026
While “Happy” singer Pharrell Williams was enjoying the match at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, Mowbray incorrectly told BBC viewers that he was American rapper A$AP Rocky – or rather “AKA Rocky” – when the camera cut to him in the stands.
“I think that is AKA Rocky...or A$AP Rocky, sorry,” Mowbray said, speaking from the commentary box alongside ex-England player Alan Shearer.
Viewers were quick to pick up on the mistake, with one writing: “BBC Commentator just called Pharrell Williams ‘Asap Rocky’ wtf????”.
Another wrote: “BBC just called Pharrell Williams ‘AKA (ASAP) Rocky’,” alongside a face-palm emoji.
Musician and songwriter Williams, 53, is best known for appearing on hits like Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky”, his 2013 single “Happy”, and the Calvin Harris song “Feels”.
Meanwhile, A$AP Rocky – real name Rakin Mayers – is also an American musician, but shot to fame with his 2012 rap singer “F***in’ Problems”, later picking up three Grammy Award nominations.
Mowbray isn’t the only commentator to misidentify a celebrity fan; Fox Sports announcer John Strong mixed up two of Hollywood’s biggest stars last night when he mistakenly identified The Odyssey’s Matt Damon as Fight Club’s Brad Pitt.
“Brad Pitt among the fans here,” Strong said confidently, before his fellow co-announcer, Stu Holden, corrected him: “That’s Matt Damon!”
They later joked about the blunder, with Strong saying: “I’m letting you take the rest of these guys. I got cocky after the first three, and I missed an absolute sitter, so I’m done.”
Damon took a break from his promotional duties for Christopher Nolan’s fantasy epic The Odyssey to attend the game with his Argentinian wife Luciana Barroso. The Odyssey comes 22 years after Pitt starred in the blockbuster Troy – based on another one of ancient Greek poet Homer’s works, the Iliad.
Last night’s Argentina-Spain game saw artists including Madonna, Shakira and Justin Bieber perform in an 11-minute half-time show – which was later slammed as “crap” by BBC presenter Wayne Rooney.
When asked by host Gabby Logan what his highlight from the show was, Rooney replied: “I’ll be honest, mine was when it finished. I like a lot of them artists but I thought it was crap.
“It just didn’t get me going and I wanted the football to come back on. I like Burna Boy, I like Bieber, I like Shakira, but that was too flat.”
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