The Double
12 Jan 2005, 04:03 PM
Press Release
Los Angeles, CA - Fox Sports World, America's Soccer Channel, will
transition into the Fox Soccer Channel on Monday, February 7, 2005. The
announcement was made today by David Sternberg, Executive Vice President and
General Manager of Fox Soccer Channel.
Fox Soccer Channel will draw more than 80% of its first-run programming
hours from world-class soccer competitions, including the Barclays English
Premier League, the English FA Cup, the UEFA Cup, the Toyota
Intercontinental Cup, World Cup qualifying matches for the United States and
England national teams, the ChampionsWorld Series, and numerous European and
Latin American national leagues. Domestic action on the network will
feature America's top professional league, Major League Soccer, as well as
matches from the United Soccer Leagues.
"Soccer has long been the world's game and now it is increasingly America's
game as well," said Sternberg. "Participation rates and attendance at soccer
matches, including MLS games and international exhibitions, have grown
dramatically in the past decade, and the United States national teams have
excelled in both the men's and women's FIFA World Cups. We at Fox are
committed to creating the single best place for American soccer fans,
players, professional and amateur associations and business partners to
converge and share in the phenomenal success of the sport."
Corporate sibling FOX Sports will provide viewers an exclusive first look at
the channel during the Super Bowl XXXIX Pre-Game Show, set for Sunday,
February 6 at 2:00 p.m. ET. Following the Super Bowl, at midnight on Monday,
February 7, Fox Soccer Channel will officially unveil all-new on-air
broadcast graphics, music and promotional messages, complemented by an
extensive consumer marketing campaign in support of the transition. The
first week's programming schedule will be highlighted by a live telecast of
the international friendly between England and Holland on Wednesday,
February 9, at 2:45 p.m. Eastern time, and a full weekend slate of seven
matches from the English Premier League, the German Bundesliga, the French
Ligue 1 and the Argentine Torneo de Clausura.
In connection with the transition, Fox Soccer Channel will introduce several
new programs and features, including a soccer scores ticker and a new weekly
show debuting in April called Fox Soccer USA, focusing on the youth and
amateur soccer scene in the United States. Fox Soccer Channel will also
continue airing its current lineup of news and highlight programs, such as
the
nightly Fox Sports World Report, Sky Sports News, Fox Football Friday and
MLS Wrap. Other global sports related to or derived from soccer, like futsal
(indoor soccer) and rugby will likewise remain part of the network's
programming mix.
Fox Soccer Channel will also transition its Web site into Fox Soccer Channel
on MSN, accessible at <http://www.foxsoccer.com> www.foxsoccer.com. The
network's site is the already the most popular on-line destination for
English-speaking soccer fans in the United States. The site delivers
comprehensive, up-to-the-minute coverage of world soccer, including
exclusive weekly columns by Fox Soccer Channel on-air talents Bobby McMahon,
Nick Webster and Sean Wheelock. The site also links Fox Soccer Channel
programming directly to viewers with such interactive features as the Fox
Sports World Report viewer mailbag and an English Premier League fantasy
game.
Originally launched in 1997, Fox Soccer Channel boasts close to 20 million
cable and satellite subscribers throughout the U.S. and Caribbean, and is
available in each of the nation's 25 largest media markets. Key
distributors include DIRECTV, DISH Network, Comcast Corp., Time Warner
Cable, Charter Communications, Cox Communications and Adelphia
Communications, among others.
Fox Soccer Channel is affiliated with Fox Sports International, an
international sports programming and production entity housed within Fox
Networks Group. Fox Networks Group, an operating unit of the Fox
Entertainment Group, consists of the FOX Broadcasting Company, Fox Cable
Networks, FOX Sports and Fox Networks Engineering & Operations (FNE&O). Fox
Cable Networks are collectively seen by more than 335 million cable and
satellite television homes and include Fox Soccer Channel, FX, FSN and its
12 owned-and-operated regional sports networks; Fox College Sports; National
Geographic Channel; SPEED Channel; Fox Sports en Espanol; Fox Movie Channel;
action sports network FUEL and the upcoming Fox Reality Channel. For more
information, visit Fox Soccer Channel online at <http://www.foxsoccer.com>
www.foxsoccer.com.
If I can somehow manage to get DirectTV soon, I'd have GolTV, TyC Sports and Fox Soccer Channel. And I get to follow the Jaguars wherever they may be.
For those of you who already have DirectTV, I hate you all.
Los Angeles, CA - Fox Sports World, America's Soccer Channel, will
transition into the Fox Soccer Channel on Monday, February 7, 2005. The
announcement was made today by David Sternberg, Executive Vice President and
General Manager of Fox Soccer Channel.
Fox Soccer Channel will draw more than 80% of its first-run programming
hours from world-class soccer competitions, including the Barclays English
Premier League, the English FA Cup, the UEFA Cup, the Toyota
Intercontinental Cup, World Cup qualifying matches for the United States and
England national teams, the ChampionsWorld Series, and numerous European and
Latin American national leagues. Domestic action on the network will
feature America's top professional league, Major League Soccer, as well as
matches from the United Soccer Leagues.
"Soccer has long been the world's game and now it is increasingly America's
game as well," said Sternberg. "Participation rates and attendance at soccer
matches, including MLS games and international exhibitions, have grown
dramatically in the past decade, and the United States national teams have
excelled in both the men's and women's FIFA World Cups. We at Fox are
committed to creating the single best place for American soccer fans,
players, professional and amateur associations and business partners to
converge and share in the phenomenal success of the sport."
Corporate sibling FOX Sports will provide viewers an exclusive first look at
the channel during the Super Bowl XXXIX Pre-Game Show, set for Sunday,
February 6 at 2:00 p.m. ET. Following the Super Bowl, at midnight on Monday,
February 7, Fox Soccer Channel will officially unveil all-new on-air
broadcast graphics, music and promotional messages, complemented by an
extensive consumer marketing campaign in support of the transition. The
first week's programming schedule will be highlighted by a live telecast of
the international friendly between England and Holland on Wednesday,
February 9, at 2:45 p.m. Eastern time, and a full weekend slate of seven
matches from the English Premier League, the German Bundesliga, the French
Ligue 1 and the Argentine Torneo de Clausura.
In connection with the transition, Fox Soccer Channel will introduce several
new programs and features, including a soccer scores ticker and a new weekly
show debuting in April called Fox Soccer USA, focusing on the youth and
amateur soccer scene in the United States. Fox Soccer Channel will also
continue airing its current lineup of news and highlight programs, such as
the
nightly Fox Sports World Report, Sky Sports News, Fox Football Friday and
MLS Wrap. Other global sports related to or derived from soccer, like futsal
(indoor soccer) and rugby will likewise remain part of the network's
programming mix.
Fox Soccer Channel will also transition its Web site into Fox Soccer Channel
on MSN, accessible at <http://www.foxsoccer.com> www.foxsoccer.com. The
network's site is the already the most popular on-line destination for
English-speaking soccer fans in the United States. The site delivers
comprehensive, up-to-the-minute coverage of world soccer, including
exclusive weekly columns by Fox Soccer Channel on-air talents Bobby McMahon,
Nick Webster and Sean Wheelock. The site also links Fox Soccer Channel
programming directly to viewers with such interactive features as the Fox
Sports World Report viewer mailbag and an English Premier League fantasy
game.
Originally launched in 1997, Fox Soccer Channel boasts close to 20 million
cable and satellite subscribers throughout the U.S. and Caribbean, and is
available in each of the nation's 25 largest media markets. Key
distributors include DIRECTV, DISH Network, Comcast Corp., Time Warner
Cable, Charter Communications, Cox Communications and Adelphia
Communications, among others.
Fox Soccer Channel is affiliated with Fox Sports International, an
international sports programming and production entity housed within Fox
Networks Group. Fox Networks Group, an operating unit of the Fox
Entertainment Group, consists of the FOX Broadcasting Company, Fox Cable
Networks, FOX Sports and Fox Networks Engineering & Operations (FNE&O). Fox
Cable Networks are collectively seen by more than 335 million cable and
satellite television homes and include Fox Soccer Channel, FX, FSN and its
12 owned-and-operated regional sports networks; Fox College Sports; National
Geographic Channel; SPEED Channel; Fox Sports en Espanol; Fox Movie Channel;
action sports network FUEL and the upcoming Fox Reality Channel. For more
information, visit Fox Soccer Channel online at <http://www.foxsoccer.com>
www.foxsoccer.com.
If I can somehow manage to get DirectTV soon, I'd have GolTV, TyC Sports and Fox Soccer Channel. And I get to follow the Jaguars wherever they may be.
For those of you who already have DirectTV, I hate you all.