''Moneyball'' is a British

game show A game show is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment (radio, television, internet, stage or other) where contestants compete for a reward. These programs can either be participatory or Let's Play, demonstrative and are typically directed b ...

that has aired on

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

since 30 October 2021 and is hosted by

Ian Wright Ian Edward Wright (born 3 November 1963) is an English television and radio personality and former professional footballer. He works as a pundit for BBC Sport and ITV Sport. Wright enjoyed success with London clubs Crystal Palace and Arsenal ...

Background

The primetime game show was commissioned in February 2021 with football pundit and former player

as host.

Format

One contestant plays at a time, answering up to six questions and accumulating a bank of up to £250,000. The centrepiece of the stage is a large screen framed by a U-shaped track. The screen is divided vertically into several zones based on the phase of the game. The contestant presses a button to set the initial height of the ball at the right side, after which it is released to roll back and forth on the track. The result is determined by the zone in which the ball stops; if it covers a boundary, the zone containing the majority of the ball takes precedence. For each question, the contestant is given a category and shown two groups of three items each. They must pair the items up to form three responses that fit the category. (E.g. given the category "Bands" and the groups "Backstreet / Jonas / One" and "Direction / Boys / Brothers," pair them up as

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Jonas Brothers The Jonas Brothers () are an American pop rock band. Formed in 2005, they gained popularity from their appearances on the Disney Channel television network. They consist of three brothers: Kevin Jonas, Joe Jonas, and Nick Jonas. Raised in W ...

, and

One Direction One Direction, often shortened to 1D, are an English-Irish pop boy band formed in London in 2010. The group are composed of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and previously Zayn Malik until his departure from the gr ...

.) If the contestant responds correctly, they roll one ball in an effort to increase their bank. The screen displays one zone with the maximum value for that question, four others with smaller amounts, and two narrow red danger zones. If the ball lands in a money zone, that amount is added to the bank. The maximum value increases from one question to the next (£10,000, £20,000, £30,000, £40,000, £50,000, and £100,000). If the contestant either responds incorrectly or lands a ball in a danger zone, no money is added to the bank for that turn and they must play a "Danger Board." The screen is divided into five zones of equal width, three blue "Safe" zones alternating with two red "Lose" zones. If the ball stops in "Safe," the game continues; if it stops in "Lose," the contestant is immediately dismissed with no winnings. Once per game, the contestant may play a "Clue Ball" after giving a response. The screen is divided into three zones, one per pairing, and the pairing on which the ball stops is revealed as correct or incorrect. The contestant may use this information as they see fit before locking in their final response to the question. After any turn, the contestant may choose to end the game and attempt to cash out. The screen is divided into five zones, three wide gold ones alternating with two narrower red "Lose" zones. The contestant wins the entire bank if the ball stops on a gold zone, or nothing if it stops on "Lose."

Reception

Hollie Richardson of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' praised Wright's abilities as a host and how the nature of the show enabled contestants to risk large amounts of money. In the same publication, Joel Golby compared ''Moneyball'' to two other new game shows: ITV's ''

Sitting on a Fortune ''Sitting on a Fortune'' is a British game show that aired on ITV from 7 November 2021 to 9 July 2023 and is hosted by Gary Lineker. Background The show was commissioned in July 2021. It is produced at Dock10 by Possessed and Potato. Format O ...

'' hosted by fellow ex-footballer

Gary Lineker Gary Winston Lineker (; born 30 November 1960) is an English former professional footballer and current sports broadcaster. He is regarded as having been one of the greatest English strikers. His media career began with the BBC, where he has p ...

and

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

's ''Moneybags'' fronted by the actor and DJ

Craig Charles Craig Joseph Charles (born 11 July 1964) is an English actor, comedian, television and radio presenter. He is best known for his roles as Dave Lister in the science fiction sitcom ''Red Dwarf'' and Lloyd Mullaney in the soap opera ''Coronation ...

. In Golby's eyes, Wright and Charles were skilled hosts while Lineker was not, but the questions were better on ''Moneybags'' than ''Moneyball''. In the ''

Belfast Telegraph The ''Belfast Telegraph'' is a daily newspaper published in Belfast, Northern Ireland, by Independent News & Media. Its editor is Eoin Brannigan. Reflecting its unionist tradition, the paper has historically been "favoured by the Protestant po ...

'', Billy Weir criticised the trend of new game shows being fronted by ex-footballers, citing Wright, Lineker and Alex Scott of ''The Tournament''. ''

Liverpool Echo The ''Liverpool Echo'' is a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales – a subsidiary company of Reach plc and is based in St Paul's Square, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is published Monday to Sunday, and is Liverp ...

'' writer Kate Lally found that audience on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

complained that the questions on ''Moneyball'' were too easy. Iain Weaver of UKGameshows.com compared ''Moneyball'' to 2003's '' Wright Around the World'' as a waste of the host's personality. He also believed that the questions were too easy, noting that he had watched three episodes without seeing a wrong answer, and found the mechanical basis of the show to be a boring "tedious gimmick" based on luck. He praised the set design, the high prizes and the large number of contestants on each show.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Moneyball (game show) 2021 British television series debuts 2020s British game shows English-language television shows ITV game shows Television series by ITV Studios