ITV posted group revenue of £1.9 billion ($2.5 billion) for the first half of 2026, flat year-on-year, while adjusted EBITA — the company's preferred profit measure — crept up 2% to £145 million from £142 million a year earlier Variety.

The headline numbers tell only part of the story. That £145 million profit figure is a steep drop from the £212 million ITV booked in the same period of 2024, when the European Football Championship — the Euros — super-charged advertising and viewing across the broadcaster's channels. No tournament this time, and the comparison shows it.

What did lift ITV in the first six months of 2026 was the World Cup. Total advertising revenue grew 8% year-on-year, driven by the tournament's pull on viewers and advertisers alike. ITVX, the broadcaster's free streaming platform, grew 27% over the same period, with its own advertising revenue up 13%.

Even that streaming surge came with a catch. ITVX absorbed a £20 million ($26 million) hit from the UK government's junk food advertising restrictions, which took effect in October 2025 and barred brands from promoting products high in sugar, salt or fat during certain broadcasts and on-demand content. Without that regulatory drag, the platform's numbers would have looked stronger still.

ITV Studios — the production arm responsible for shows sold to broadcasters and streamers worldwide — saw its EBITA fall 9% to £97 million from £107 million in the first half of 2025. That followed a 20% drop the year before. The Studios division has now seen two consecutive years of declining profitability at the half-year stage, even as full-year revenue for the unit reached £2.1 billion in 2025, up 5% on the prior year, according to Enders Analysis Enders Analysis.

Looking ahead, ITV warned that advertising is likely to fall 5% in the third quarter, leaving nine-month results roughly flat. The World Cup boost fades; the junk food rules do not.

Despite the mixed picture, ITV returned cash to shareholders. The company declared an interim dividend of 1.7p per share and launched a £100 million share buyback — a programme in which a company repurchases its own stock from the market to reduce the number of shares in circulation, typically supporting the share price.

All of this lands against the backdrop of a major corporate reshaping. ITV is selling its media and entertainment arm — its channels and streaming operation — to Comcast-owned Sky, while ITV Studios will be spun off as an independently listed company. CEO Carolyn McCall confirmed that the regulatory review process is underway and that the UK culture minister is expected to scrutinise the deal closely Variety.

For viewers, that means the broadcaster behind Coronation Street, I'm a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! and the streaming home of British drama could soon sit inside a very different corporate structure — one where its studios, its channels, and its streaming future are no longer under one roof.