ITV were at the centre of an embarrassing gaffe during the FA Cup semi-final between Chelsea and Crystal Palace as their coverage briefly cut to the Lion King shortly after Ruben Loftus-Cheek's opening goal.
Fans were left baffled as the game disappeared from their screens in the 66th minute and was replaced by several seconds of footage from the famous movie, which was being shown on the BBC at the same time as the match at Wembley.
The error cut short footage of Loftus-Cheek's celebrations after he had put Chelsea 1-0 up. Mason Mount added a second 11 minutes later to seal the Blues' place in the final against Liverpool.
Viewers reacted with laughter as they mocked ITV for the incident, with one user, @BenPeterson82, joking on Twitter that he had 'checked VAR and Simba was offside'.
'Should CFC players now refer to Reuben Loftus-Cheek as the Lion King,' added @AndyRush5, while @AliCampbell90, wrote: 'It’s always been traditional to show 15 seconds of the Lion King. Respect the magic of the FA Cup.'
'We briefly interrupt the football to bring you The Lion King,' said @SlapstickSally, who also posted a clip from the ITV coverage. 'That happen to anyone else?'
A few fans opted for a more serious analysis of the gaffe, with @TobyEllisNoakes writing: 'The three year wait for a RLC goal slightly ruined by the telly jumping to the Lion King.'
It was the latest in a long line of howlers from ITV with its football coverage. Back in 2009, the broadcaster infamously missed Dan Gosling's extra-time winner for Everton against rivals Liverpool after cutting to an advert break.
At the World Cup the following year, viewers missed Steven Gerrard's opening goal for England against the United States because of an 'interruption' in the ITV feed.
The victory for Chelsea sent them through to the May 14 final - a repeat of the Carabao Cup final, which Liverpool won on penalties.
Loftus-Cheek broke the deadlock with a fine finish before Mason Mount slotted home a second to kill the game as a contest.
Lemdmnopsy
0
ITV indicated that an an***l scored the goal. It was intentional.
Nisdoruy
3
I think most of you people in UK you should have something called dstv from South Africa is the best instead of paying fot ITV to watch lion King engage dstv and watch football ok maybe because you don't pay is for free but if you pay they won't make that kind of mistake so stop complaining and watch your lion King
Nisdoruy
0
lion is the king that's for sure
Nisdoruy
0
oh man maybe that was just a lion from Chelsea
Golden25
3
I guess the owner of the TV where Arsenal fans
cemabpruyz
1
TV coverage has become amateurish. Quite frankly we had fewer glitches 20 years ago. They charge outrageous fees for a production that isn’t up to snuff.
Akinajayi1
3
Chelsea's logo is a blue lion, ITV were just trying to pay homage 🤣🤣
Akinajayi1
1
Chelsea's should be ready to stop Liverpool from quadruple
Chelsea's logo is a blue lion, ITV were just trying to pay homage 😂
kayapeople
1
Chelsea's should be ready to stop Liverpool from quadruple