I realize this could go in the media forum, but given the related video games land here I figured we're in our own little world.
I wanted to give my personal snapshot of the current state of soccer broadcasting in the States. It's come a long way from watching VHS tapes in the 80's to having a virtual nonstop barrage of matches from an amazing array of leagues every in-season weekend. We're spoiled rotten and I love it. I'd appreciate any tidbits of knowledge or opinions of those who share the passion for the game.
I'll also preface by mentioning I have the absolutely awful Frontier Communications providing my television service. Frontier bought AT&T Uverse in my area, which had been doing very well by comparison.
NBC Sports- This is the gold standard, in my opinion. The Premier League coverage has been absolutely second to none since NBC took over a few years ago. Native broadcasters cover every match every weekend. As many matches as possible are broadcast live and everything is available through their NBC Sports Live Extra app. The picture quality is on par with ESPN.
In-game commentary is covered by UK-based teams. Play-by-play is generally excellent. The color commentary can be hit or miss but is generally less objectionable than most.
The studio shows are rather vanilla but seem to be modeled off the England-based counterparts. The additional content is fairly excellent (Premier League Download, Goal Zone). Men in Blazers lives here. It's a watered-down quickie version of their podcast but can be a welcome addition.
The app is the best in the business. It's not far off MLB At Bat. Realtime data is available for the match you're watching with simple access to replays or other major events. Stats are updated. Live scores are available or can be hidden to avoid spoilers. Tactical cameras with ambient crowd noise are available for the headlining matches and they're a neat treat.
ESPN- In game presentation is where it really counts and ESPN still does very well. They have some good names in commentary, but also some significant duds.
They've done fantastic work in bringing nice analysis to the Euro studio shows. The rotation of big names with thoughtful commentary has been a nice touch. The ESPN FC broadcast has been similarly good, at least during the tournament. It's been rather bland otherwise.
The WatchESPN app is competent. It doesn't seem to work with Chrome right now. It doesn't have any additional content outside of the broadcast itself and it's significantly (minutes) behind the live telecast.
Fox Sports- Fox is an unmitigated disaster. Good news- they have the World Cup!
They bury games on obscure channels (one area where Frontier shines, coincidentally). The picture quality can range from passable to "1990's RealMedia" with compression blocks measuring inches wide on a decently sized television.
The commentary teams range from borderline to simply unlistenable. With the Gus Johnson experiment officially dead they've done little to reinforce their stable. Alexi Lalas should never be in a booth doing color commentary.
The studio shows are a rehash of their NFL pre- and postgame broadcasts with groups of folks yelling at each other and arguing inane and often irrelevant minutia.
I haven't used the streaming app.
beIN- These guys have quietly put together some nice content. As a Serie A fan it's nice to get at least a couple of games per week. Their 90 in 30 broadcast is a nice extended highlights show. There really aren't any significant pre- or postgame shows to speak of. You'll also always know when the next El Clasico is on, even if it's hundreds of days away.
Quality through Frontier is slightly above or at Fox's level, unfortunately. Frontier doesn't pay beIN for the rights to use their streaming app so, again, I can't comment on it.
The elephant in the beIN room is Ray Hudson. He gets all of their big games and he has no business in a broadcast booth. The character he plays is clearly more important to beIN than the game he's broadcasting. It's odd because his other work (podcasts, studio guest appearances, etc) really isn't bad and can be insightful.
Others- I don't have access to GolTV. I haven't tried Univision, mainly because the "GOOOOOOOOOOOOOL" call is fingernails on a chalkboard to me. What else am I missing?
I wanted to give my personal snapshot of the current state of soccer broadcasting in the States. It's come a long way from watching VHS tapes in the 80's to having a virtual nonstop barrage of matches from an amazing array of leagues every in-season weekend. We're spoiled rotten and I love it. I'd appreciate any tidbits of knowledge or opinions of those who share the passion for the game.
I'll also preface by mentioning I have the absolutely awful Frontier Communications providing my television service. Frontier bought AT&T Uverse in my area, which had been doing very well by comparison.
NBC Sports- This is the gold standard, in my opinion. The Premier League coverage has been absolutely second to none since NBC took over a few years ago. Native broadcasters cover every match every weekend. As many matches as possible are broadcast live and everything is available through their NBC Sports Live Extra app. The picture quality is on par with ESPN.
In-game commentary is covered by UK-based teams. Play-by-play is generally excellent. The color commentary can be hit or miss but is generally less objectionable than most.
The studio shows are rather vanilla but seem to be modeled off the England-based counterparts. The additional content is fairly excellent (Premier League Download, Goal Zone). Men in Blazers lives here. It's a watered-down quickie version of their podcast but can be a welcome addition.
The app is the best in the business. It's not far off MLB At Bat. Realtime data is available for the match you're watching with simple access to replays or other major events. Stats are updated. Live scores are available or can be hidden to avoid spoilers. Tactical cameras with ambient crowd noise are available for the headlining matches and they're a neat treat.
ESPN- In game presentation is where it really counts and ESPN still does very well. They have some good names in commentary, but also some significant duds.
They've done fantastic work in bringing nice analysis to the Euro studio shows. The rotation of big names with thoughtful commentary has been a nice touch. The ESPN FC broadcast has been similarly good, at least during the tournament. It's been rather bland otherwise.
The WatchESPN app is competent. It doesn't seem to work with Chrome right now. It doesn't have any additional content outside of the broadcast itself and it's significantly (minutes) behind the live telecast.
Fox Sports- Fox is an unmitigated disaster. Good news- they have the World Cup!
They bury games on obscure channels (one area where Frontier shines, coincidentally). The picture quality can range from passable to "1990's RealMedia" with compression blocks measuring inches wide on a decently sized television.
The commentary teams range from borderline to simply unlistenable. With the Gus Johnson experiment officially dead they've done little to reinforce their stable. Alexi Lalas should never be in a booth doing color commentary.
The studio shows are a rehash of their NFL pre- and postgame broadcasts with groups of folks yelling at each other and arguing inane and often irrelevant minutia.
I haven't used the streaming app.
beIN- These guys have quietly put together some nice content. As a Serie A fan it's nice to get at least a couple of games per week. Their 90 in 30 broadcast is a nice extended highlights show. There really aren't any significant pre- or postgame shows to speak of. You'll also always know when the next El Clasico is on, even if it's hundreds of days away.
Quality through Frontier is slightly above or at Fox's level, unfortunately. Frontier doesn't pay beIN for the rights to use their streaming app so, again, I can't comment on it.
The elephant in the beIN room is Ray Hudson. He gets all of their big games and he has no business in a broadcast booth. The character he plays is clearly more important to beIN than the game he's broadcasting. It's odd because his other work (podcasts, studio guest appearances, etc) really isn't bad and can be insightful.
Others- I don't have access to GolTV. I haven't tried Univision, mainly because the "GOOOOOOOOOOOOOL" call is fingernails on a chalkboard to me. What else am I missing?
