GOL TV takes another step....backwards!

[HDSports]

First, GOLTV basically cut out the weekly Friday Bundesliga match, with the rare exception of a "showcase" match (which is rare because the top teams are usually playing "in Europe" (i.e. Champions League, UEFA Cup)) and so will not be scheduled on a Friday. The current weekend schedule does not include the 9:30 am (ET) Saturday Bundesliga match, but instead has the two matches from Germany shown on a delayed basis (11:30 am and 6:00 pm). What has preempted this match? Nothing of note. My guess is that either someone decided that showing early matches (especially when considering how early they air on the west coast) gets a smaller audience than showing the game later in the day, or, since the early match often used the European announcer, by showing it later, they can more easily substitute the audio with their own "on site in South Florida" broadcast team.

Either way, it is a step in the wrong direction. Fans of world soccer are used to watching games live even in the morning hours, and personally, I prefer it because I would watch the early England match at 7:40 am and tune to GOL TV afterwards to watch the Bundesliga match. I am not going to sit at home on Saturday night to watch a match played seven hours beforehand. I understand that some matches must be recorded (such as on Sunday, when GOLTV has to choose between a match from Germany or from Spain) but this is again purely a case of thinking they are packaging their games better when in reality they are reducing their relevance. How about showing the game live at 9:30 am and repeating it later for those to whom it is "too early"?

...not to mention the game from Columbia, which could be shown live, but is delayed to fit in the earlier taped German match!

[Real Corona]

GolTV looks even more amateurish than FSC, and this just furthers that perception.

[ncfcb]

Just noticed the same thing. Let's hope it's just an exception. I hate to wait until 6pm to see my Bayern while frantically avoiding the result.

[bigdan]

Just seems that soccer broadcasts have taken a step backwards this season, the anouncers are the worst ever and now the coverage is being hit, is it a 'soccer huricane' doing the damage! Jeez! :(

[Real Corona]

As GolTV has already shown with its coverage of the World Cup, it is trying to reinvent the meaning of the word "live."

[jgoal5]

Looking ahead to the 20th, they already have the first Bundesliga match on that day kicking off at 11:30.

[huhe888]

Why 11:30am ET?

If GolTV wanted to delay the Bundesliga matches on Saturday, it might as well wait until 12noon ET so that it doesn't compete with EPL on the other channels.

[denver_mugwamp]

All of this is meaningless to those of us on Dish. Apparently GolTV is gone from Dish and who knows when it's soming back. This would probably be a large dent in GolTV's income and might explain some things.

[Real Corona]

GolTV makes me a sad panda.

[Chims]

I recently got FiosTV after not having cable/satellite for almost 2 years. It seems to me that in this time period, GolTV has really gone backwards, while FSC has really stepped it up. The variety of coverage on FSC is now outstanding, and they really seem to be making improvements. Their original programming, while not polished like ESPN and the other major networks, does seem to be getting better. I'm very impressed with FSC's coverage of the CONCACAF Champions League.

GolTV just seems to be taking backward steps. Most of their original stuff seems amateurish and anytime you have a reduction in coverage (like with the Bundesliga), it's concerning.

[Bfritzpa]

I watch more GOL TV then FSC becuase I'm a bigger fan BundesLiga and La Liga then EPL and Le Calcio. Either way I think we're headed to bad times here in the USA.. Did you notice the Olympic Coverage on NBC Affiliates actually had Commercials during LIVE matches. They just pulled away from the game!

With nobody complaining I can see FSC and GOL TV doing the same to European League games.

[Real Corona]

I watch more GOL TV then FSC becuase I'm a bigger fan BundesLiga and La Liga then EPL and Le Calcio. Either way I think we're headed to bad times here in the USA.. Did you notice the Olympic Coverage on NBC Affiliates actually had Commercials during LIVE matches. They just pulled away from the game!

With nobody complaining I can see FSC and GOL TV doing the same to European League games.


I think they would be crazy to do that. The olympics are one thing, they can get away with it because of all the casual fans who are watching the olympics, not olympic soccer. Maybe GolTV might do it, because they are showing that quality standards are not so important. But realistically, there would be an uproar because the people who watch this are dedicated soccer fans, who would be very unhappy.

[HDSports]

Why 11:30am ET?

If GolTV wanted to delay the Bundesliga matches on Saturday, it might as well wait until 12noon ET so that it doesn't compete with EPL on the other channels.


...and put matches back to back to the remainder of the Saturday schedule. That's what I was wondering too. Then I had thoughts regarding them sublicensing live Bundesliga out for cash in return for not showing any games during the live windows (Fri 2:45pm-4:45pm, Sat 9:30 am-11:30 am, Sun 11:00 am-1:00 pm ET), which would make the 11:30 am airing make sense (since it is the earliest that they can show the delayed match) as well as the showing of the La Liga game Sunday at 11am in preference to the Bundesliga match, which is shown on delay at 5 pm. On the other hand, it might just be that the Spanish game is the more attractive (featuring La Liga runnerup Vllarreal), and besides, who would be making such an offer? It couldn't be ProSiebenSat.1 Welt...the German language channel that shows Bundesliga during the live timeframe. Incidentally, they are available through DISH network....wasn't there some news recently involving GOLTV and Dish?

[Real Corona]

Wait so you're saying that GolTV is getting paid not to show the games live?

[HDSports]

Just seems that soccer broadcasts have taken a step backwards this season, the anouncers are the worst ever and now the coverage is being hit, is it a 'soccer huricane' doing the damage! Jeez! :(


Actually, despite GOL's schedule move and Setanta's endless "negotiations" with the French League, I think on balance things are much better than they were only a couple of years back.

Not too long ago, FSC looked like a disaster, shedding half the Premier League as well as their weekly French and German games. Now I believe they have more than turned things around, with the addition of Italian Soccer, Spanish Supercup, UEFA Cup, World Cup Qualifying including the recent addition of Asian games, the CONCACAF Champions League, College Soccer, plus MLS pregame and postgame, even a weekly game from the A-League. Not all of these may be your cup of tea (not all are mine), but they are appealing across the spectrum of soccer and I give them credit for that. (Plus they use international announcers for both England and Italy leagues!).

Setanta has joined FSC in carrying the FA cup this year, giving us five live matches per weekend and eliminating the PPV of this competition. The division of Premier League TV rights has led to more live coverage. ESPNU's emergence has resulted in televising of FIFA U-21 and U-17 tournaments last year, with those matches not shown being available on ESPN360. ESPN has gone from one Champions League match a week not long ago to four (2 each on ESPN2 and ESPN Classic) and their Euro and World Cup coverage has brought us international soccer in HD. Who even months ago would have dreamed that NBC would set up a special HD channel to show every Olympic Soccer match in HD? And even GOLTV, despite questionable scheduling practices has recently added World Cup Qualifying matches from Germany, Spain, Italy, Holland, Wales, and Scotland to their schedule.

And the biggest addition for me is ESPN360. They show the most live matches of anyone....in the next 7 days, for example, they have league play from Holland (3 matches), Russia (2), Japan (1), China(2), and Italy(4)...plus matches from the UEFA Cup (2), UEFA Champions League(6) , and Copa Italia (3).

The reason I brought up the GOLTV situation was not to complain about soccer coverage in general, but because I find their GOLTV's scheduling moves counterproductive (unless they made some deal we don't know about, which would make sense to them from a business point of view). in either case, I am curious why they seem to let so many matches they have rights to go unbroadcasted and to delay live ones when there is no conflict with other matches.

[HDSports]

Wait so you're saying that GolTV is getting paid not to show the games live?


No, I am just trying to create a scenario that would make sense of their moves. I don't claim to know anything more than you do and am trying to come up with a rational reason (it makes no sense to me from a viewership perspective, so I am guessing that it has to have some business ramifications). Remember that a couple of years back GOLTV sold their top La Liga game weekly to Worldsport HD to recoup some cash on the costs of getting rights to that league.

[Real Corona]

No, I am just trying to create a scenario that would make sense of their moves. I don't claim to know anything more than you do and am trying to come up with a rational reason (it makes no sense to me from a viewership perspective, so I am guessing that it has to have some business ramifications). Remember that a couple of years back GOLTV sold their top La Liga game weekly to Worldsport HD to recoup some cash on the costs of getting rights to that league.


Oh, I thought you had the answer. :( It doesn't make any sense to me either.

[panicfc]

I emailed Goltv twice this week, have not gotten a response yet. I'm going to call them tomorrow and I'll report back what I find out.

I'm just guessing they pay a lower price for the non-live broadcasts and Dish's cancellation is hurting them a bit.

[Real Corona]

I emailed Goltv twice this week, have not gotten a response yet. I'm going to call them tomorrow and I'll report back what I find out.

I'm just guessing they pay a lower price for the non-live broadcasts and Dish's cancellation is hurting them a bit.

Let us know.

[panicfc]

For sure.