900 Million Reasons to Stay Up

From Sky Sports:

 

Nothing, as yet, as to how that will affect our US TV game schedules for next season but I assume that will be forthcoming, from Setanta, at any rate.

 

FSC has pretty much admitted that they do not have the deep pockets ESPN does, but how can we all not applaud Faux's effort to mine this market (even if we do wish they did a bit more live matches and little less pushing of Chuck Norris's latest workout regime).

That said, dare we dream, or even want, ESPN to make a bid on EPL matches??

 

Don; You don't find "back of the old onion bag" insightful?? ESPN has added the European Championships to go along w/their Champions League coverage. However, there is no way they'll bump college football/basketball.

 

Well SoCal Joe, I'm not sure they would have to bump anything. With all the damn ESPN channels these days, and the fact that the matches start pretty damn early in most timezones, I have to think they are crunching the numbers.

Beckham, Don? That is not what I am referring to. I think most no my stance on that league and what they have to offer. I'm not interested in see any of that.

 

FSC and Setanta just send us broadcasts that already exist, so the cost is minimal. ESPN never does that--they always use their own prople/production/etc., so it would be much more expensive for them to show the games.

However, it would be nice to have some of ESPN's quality on the broadcasts. The current broadcasts are of the quality of a mediocre local producion about 5-10 years ago. Nothing extra on any of the players, no halftime show, no useful graphics other than the score. (I know they overdo that, but the do put up a lot of interesing info.)

Are these the same feeds that the British public sees? I'd be surprised that Sky Sports, owned by the same people who own Fox, would have such a bare-bones broadcasts?

 

PCB; The one thing I'm sure the big-wigs at ESPN are mulling over is the possibility of a soccer specific channel that could partner up with their ESPN Deportes.

 

Hahah. Well both Nick and Steven have made it clear they wouldn't do color commentary, but they love to knock down the others.

 

Please, please, please, if ESPN gets rights to broadcast EPL soccer in the USA, NO JACK EDWARDS. If I hear the phrase "climbs the ladder" one more time, I'm going to go out, buy my own ladder, and slam it shut repeatedly around my ears until I'm incapable of hearing it ever again.

 

The thought of ESPN owning the US EPL rights should scare us a little as supporters of one of the "smaller market" teams in the league. I love FSC's coverage because they're much more willing to show most any game that's on, whereas I'm afraid ESPN would just feed us the "Big 4" ad nausium. They tend to be front runners with their baseball scheduling and were terrible with their schedule variation back when they covered the NHL, although I realize this is mainly ratings-driven behavior by them. Brian will be gone before we know it, and unless Dempsey becomes a big hit, there may not be much incentive to them airing Fulham to the States in the future. If an ESPN network becomes our only outlet in the US, I'd certainly doubt that we'd ever get to see a matchup like Fulham v Boro again!