ESPN and Setanta giving away CL Results

[Real Corona]

I hadn't noticed it for sometime, but ESPN still carries Champions league results on its bottom line. It doesn't carry the result of the delay game on ESPN classic, today for example was Real-Zenit, but it ruined the Arsenal match I wanted to watch later. Then Setanta, showing Fenerbache-Kiev, had goal alerts being shown about Bayern vs Lyon, which was coming on right after. Needless to say, instead of watching four matches, I saw two. Is there anything that can be done about this?

[danielmak]

I hadn't noticed it for sometime, but ESPN still carries Champions league results on its bottom line. It doesn't carry the result of the delay game on ESPN classic, today for example was Real-Zenit, but it ruined the Arsenal match I wanted to watch later. Then Setanta, showing Fenerbache-Kiev, had goal alerts being shown about Bayern vs Lyon, which was coming on right after. Needless to say, instead of watching four matches, I saw two. Is there anything that can be done about this?

Yes. Luckily both ruin results by showing the scores at the bottom of the screen (Setanta used to show results on a dropdown menu at the top of the screen and there was no way to avoid the scores other than looking away and hoping you timed it right--they still do this with EPL and SPL results from time to time during weekend games). Anyway, take two pieces of 8 1/2 X 11 paper, tape them together so they are as long as your TV screen and tape them to the bottom. The ESPN ticker is a little lower on the screen than the Sky via Setanta popups that occur. You will be safe because you can't see scores through the paper and the announcers rarely announce the scores. It's ugly and covers some of the action, but it does the trick and is much better than seeing scores. I can usually watch about 8 games per week if my schedule falls into place. I can do this because none of the games have been ruined for me. Of course, this is the only forum I read during those days and my friends know to ask what I've seen before we start chatting about the games.

HDsports and others have commented in the past about using a zoom feature if you have an HDTV. I don't, so this ugly and cheap trick works for me.

[Real Corona]

Yes. Luckily both ruin results by showing the scores at the bottom of the screen (Setanta used to show results on a dropdown menu at the top of the screen and there was no way to avoid the scores other than looking away and hoping you timed it right--they still do this with EPL and SPL results from time to time during weekend games). Anyway, take two pieces of 8 1/2 X 11 paper, tape them together so they are as long as your TV screen and tape them to the bottom. The ESPN ticker is a little lower on the screen than the Sky via Setanta popups that occur. You will be safe because you can't see scores through the paper and the announcers rarely announce the scores. It's ugly and covers some of the action, but it does the trick and is much better than seeing scores. I can usually watch about 8 games per week if my schedule falls into place. I can do this because none of the games have been ruined for me. Of course, this is the only forum I read during those days and my friends know to ask what I've seen before we start chatting about the games.

HDsports and others have commented in the past about using a zoom feature if you have an HDTV. I don't, so this ugly and cheap trick works for me.

So the zoom feature cuts off the bottom portion? I imagine it loses some of the action as well, but my plans of not leaving my couch all evening except for refreshment breaks are important!

[corolla]

Yes. Luckily both ruin results by showing the scores at the bottom of the screen (Setanta used to show results on a dropdown menu at the top of the screen and there was no way to avoid the scores other than looking away and hoping you timed it right--they still do this with EPL and SPL results from time to time during weekend games). Anyway, take two pieces of 8 1/2 X 11 paper, tape them together so they are as long as your TV screen and tape them to the bottom. The ESPN ticker is a little lower on the screen than the Sky via Setanta popups that occur. You will be safe because you can't see scores through the paper and the announcers rarely announce the scores. It's ugly and covers some of the action, but it does the trick and is much better than seeing scores. I can usually watch about 8 games per week if my schedule falls into place. I can do this because none of the games have been ruined for me. Of course, this is the only forum I read during those days and my friends know to ask what I've seen before we start chatting about the games.

HDsports and others have commented in the past about using a zoom feature if you have an HDTV. I don't, so this ugly and cheap trick works for me.

I was cracking up reading this. My girlfriend came over during the matchday 1 Marseilles v. Liverpool match and she looked at my tv and said, "what the hell is that?". I had a similar contraption set up to avoid other scores. I'm glad to hear that I"m not the only maniac who uses this technique. :D

[socceraction]

I was cracking up reading this. My girlfriend came over during the matchday 1 Marseilles v. Liverpool match and she looked at my tv and said, "what the hell is that?". I had a similar contraption set up to avoid other scores. I'm glad to hear that I"m not the only maniac who uses this technique. :D

Speaking of girlfriends (in my case - wife). She actually brings her friends down to my basement during CL games or qualifiers to show how I watch 4 games at the same time. I'm one of those idiots that refuses to watch games on delay and quite frankly love the thrill of watching all the games at the same time. I feel like an animal at the zoo as she sneaks in and says to her friends: "This is my husband. A new breed of home sapien with apparently 4 eyeballs....." :o

SA

[ZimbabweBob]

lol, yeah i used to cover the bottom of my friends tv with duct tape in order to hide the ticker :p

[rafaelj]

I've been using a similar contraption for years now. I find the whole ticker obsession that a lot of TV stations have very annoying, as if all of us viewers were a bunch of ADD kids. But the ESPN ticker that gives away the result that you're actually watching can only be described as ... utterly idiotic. ... I could easily go into a long diatribe about how many stupid things we tolerate in this country ... the imperial measurement system, the idea of creationism, W., etc etc

;-)

[Real Corona]

I've been using a similar contraption for years now. I find the whole ticker obsession that a lot of TV stations have very annoying, as if all of us viewers were a bunch of ADD kids. But the ESPN ticker that gives away the result that you're actually watching can only be described as ... utterly idiotic. ... I could easily go into a long diatribe about how many stupid things we tolerate in this country ... the imperial measurement system, the idea of creationism, W., etc etc

;-)

I believe in creationism. Man created football, and football is religion. :)

[7spencer7]

You guys can't just ignore a ticker? I never have any trouble with that.

[danielmak]

You guys can't just ignore a ticker? I never have any trouble with that.

No.

And it's harder with the Setanta games because the info. just pops up, which naturally draws one's eyes. During MD1 I was watching one of the Setanta games and the tape on my paper contraption came undone on one side of the TV causing the paper to fall off. Two seconds later a score for the game I was going to watch next pops up. One of these days we will be able to control what's on the screen and I will be in heaven. You young dudes and your ADD ways will be excited because you can put 20 million things on your screen at once, and us old folks who just want to watch some football without all of the crap on the screen will be set as well. I would have the score, the timer, and the game.

In response to SA's comment about his wife bringing her friends down to the zoo to watch the football neanderthal, I would just say that I can't do all those games at once. I read somewhere (maybe Tim Parks' book A Season With Verona--make sure you read this if you haven't) that football has a narrative arc and it totally rings true for me. I wouldn't watch four movies at once because I want to follow the plot; the same is true for a football match. Take care.

[Rivaldinho]

ESPN had trouble today because they were showing Sky Sports video feed. The Sky ticker popped up a few times. At least once, they cut away to crowd shots in the middle of the game in an attempt to miss the scores. Not a good solution.

[HDSports]

You guys can't just ignore a ticker? I never have any trouble with that.

I find the ticker completely annoying. I get around it by changing my TV screen setting to Zoom. It knocks out the ticker, It also knocks out the score box, but since the clock in soccer is running time, just look when the half begins to know how much time has elapsed. Besides, every ten minutes the score and time appear on your screen if you've lost track. And the extra time indicator is visible when it is flashed on the screen as well.

[danielmak]

ESPN had trouble today because they were showing Sky Sports video feed. The Sky ticker popped up a few times. At least once, they cut away to crowd shots in the middle of the game in an attempt to miss the scores. Not a good solution.

I just assumed that the cutaways were a product of satellite outages since Gol's coverage of la Liga often features similar cutaways when there are transmission problems. But either way, the larger lesson is this in case folks haven't figured it out yet: Once you see something on the screen that lets you know that there is a potential for other scores to be given away, trust that you will see that thing again. The first time the Sky ticker came across, which I know is not a normal thing to see on an ESPN match, I *knew* that ticker would come again. So, I moved my paper contraption up the screen. That's a drag because I was starting to feel like I was down to 1/3 of my screen but I was able to watch Chelsea-Roma last night as well without knowing the score and have other games to watch on Friday and this weekend because I do not know those scores either. The paper contraption is, for those who don't have a zoom function, a soccer fan's very good friend.

[Makandal]

I don't know for Setanta, but surely the ESPN ticker is way at the bottom and easy to overlook. Ignoring it all together make more sense than going through all that trouble masking it. When I'm watching a game on ESPN, I have to consciously look down there to see what's being scrolled down there, like when I want to stay updated on some scores or other sport news. Nver felt that it was impossible to ignore.

[DCUdiplomat96]

I hadn't noticed it for sometime, but ESPN still carries Champions league results on its bottom line. It doesn't carry the result of the delay game on ESPN classic, today for example was Real-Zenit, but it ruined the Arsenal match I wanted to watch later. Then Setanta, showing Fenerbache-Kiev, had goal alerts being shown about Bayern vs Lyon, which was coming on right after. Needless to say, instead of watching four matches, I saw two. Is there anything that can be done about this?

yep deal with it or rearrange you schedule

[Real Corona]

yep deal with it or rearrange you schedule


Wow, thanks for your input!

[O Fenômeno]

You guys can't just ignore a ticker? I never have any trouble with that.

Well I know now that constantly show the damn scores....it used to suck when they showed the highlights during HALFTIEM though...

But as soon as I see the UEFA or CL at the ticker I just don't focus on the ticker...Or I just flick through the scroll bar..(I have Comcast Digital Cable)

[rangers00]

You guys are unreal, complaining about a ticker.

Try to imagine this if Tommy Smythe is doing this on Atletico Madrid X Liverpool telecast:

"Messi just opened the scoring for Barcelona"

"Xavi Hernandez scored his 2nd for Barcelona"

"Terry just scored in the Chelsea game"

"Adriano just scored!!!!"

You basically get notified for every goal scored on the marquee games other than the one you are watching.

That's how commentary is done in Asian countries. The commentators actually think that updating the happenings of the other games is a service to you. Why do they do that? because very few people would do things you guys do: watch multiple games, some of the games delayed and try to avoid the scores.

They also do that for the Saturday 15:00 BT games of the Premiership...

[DCUdiplomat96]

i cant really how its a problem, ESPN has hadthe ticker for yrs over a decade and its never been a problem. yall eurosnobs never get it.

[Real Corona]

You guys are unreal, complaining about a ticker.

Try to imagine this if Tommy Smythe is doing this on Atletico Madrid X Liverpool telecast:

"Messi just opened the scoring for Barcelona"

"Xavi Hernandez scored his 2nd for Barcelona"

"Terry just scored in the Chelsea game"

"Adriano just scored!!!!"

You basically get notified for every goal scored on the marquee games other than the one you are watching.

That's how commentary is done in Asian countries. The commentators actually think that updating the happenings of the other games is a service to you. Why do they do that? because very few people would do things you guys do: watch multiple games, some of the games delayed and try to avoid the scores.

They also do that for the Saturday 15:00 BT games of the Premiership...


ESPN stopped doing that several years ago when people complained. They even specifically warn people when the highlights are coming on and guess which game is the only game not shown on the ticker? The delay game on ESPN Classic. It's not like they don't know what they're doing.