Top Ten People You Don't Want To Sit Next To At A Game

[cpwilson80]

Didn't see this posted elsewhere, but I enjoyed reading this column:

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/feature?id=289972&cc=5901


7) Why Doesn't ESPN Show More Soccer? Guy - When attending a soccer match, I don't like to disclose my place of employment for this reason only. Usually there's one guy in the crowd who thinks his business strategy for ESPN, which usually includes showing ten soccer games per week, will result in millions of dollars of profit. After almost a decade, there's one thing I have learned at ESPN. For the most part, the people here know what they're doing. OK, so the "Mohr Sports" show with Jay Mohr and "Unscripted" with Chris Connelly were busts, but nobody's perfect.

[da_cfo]

Originally posted by cpwilson80
7) Why Doesn't ESPN Show More Soccer? Guy - When attending a soccer match, I don't like to disclose my place of employment for this reason only. Usually there's one guy in the crowd who thinks his business strategy for ESPN, which usually includes showing ten soccer games per week, will result in millions of dollars of profit. After almost a decade, there's one thing I have learned at ESPN. For the most part, the people here know what they're doing. OK, so the "Mohr Sports" show with Jay Mohr and "Unscripted" with Chris Connelly were busts, but nobody's perfect.

Other notable disasters at the Mouse House in Bristol:

Playmakers - ratings fell off the face of the earth, from a 2 rating on week 1 to well below 1.0 by the time the series ended. Not even a guest appearance by Snoop Dogg could save the show, which got the expected ax last week.

Beg Borrow and Deal - ratings for series 2 never got anywhere near 1.0. The show was banished from prime time to midnight and was replaced by World Series of Poker reruns (which got 3 times the audience).

ESPN Extra - a soccer-centric PPV channel which never reached more than 2 million digital cable homes. Plug pulled after 2 years.

ESPN West - ESPN made too many enemies among the cable MSOs by raising rates 20% each year. The MSOs fought back to kill off the channel 60 days before launch by refusing to negotiate.

EXPN (a.k.a. ESPN X) - extreme sports channel never got off the ground in either cable/satellite or internet form. Outmanuevered by both OLN (which acquired the Gravity Games from Octagon) and FOX (which operates a competing channel in FUEL).

==

Disasters in the making at ESPN:

ESPN Deportes - see ESPN West above. None of the MSOs want anything to do with the channel as long as ESPN continues to raise rates, and as long as the channel does NOT have major Mexican futbol MATCHES (a 30-minute talk show ech week isn't enough when all competing channels have similar shows.)

Cold Pizza - an expensive morning show on ESPN2 that gets microscopic ratings (virtually nobody watches ESPN2 in the morning). The production cost for a show based in New York City (a union town) can't be justified given the tiny audience.

[Dr. Wankler]

2) Horn Guy - There could be nothing more annoying than sitting in the horn section at the soccer game. Soccer fans do a great job of building atmosphere at the game, but the horns have to go. Horns also kill soccer TV ratings. The casual viewer will not stop on the channel of the soccer game when the first thing he hears is the horn. You could have Al Michaels calling the game, it won't matter.

Interesting twist, with B&M implications, on this very common MLS thread topic.

[the101er]

Great article. Hit the nail on the head ten times in a row.

Usually, these types are enablers. For example, soccer coach brings soccer mom and first time to a soccer game guy with him. This enables soccer coach to explain offsides, and why he would be playing a 2-1-2-2-3 formation, "Just like the one we used to win the U6 Championship, remember honey!".

[eric515]

Originally posted by da_cfo

ESPN Deportes - see ESPN West above. None of the MSOs want anything to do with the channel as long as ESPN continues to raise rates, and as long as the channel does NOT have major Mexican futbol MATCHES (a 30-minute talk show ech week isn't enough when all competing channels have

See, this is the problem I have with ESPN Deportes. I have watched the ESPN2 simulcast a few times, and they dedicate maybe a segment to soccer highlights. It's not so much ESPN trying to give Latinos the sports they want to know about and see, but about ESPN shoving the NHL and NBA down another segment of the population's throat.

If they were basketball highlights, they would show extended highlights of each game, and have a roundtable discussion with Bill Walton and Greg Anthony about 3 or 4 of them. And hockey?? Find me 5 guys who speak Spanish as a first, or even second, language who even care about hockey!!

If they don't put as much time into covering soccer as the "out the ass" coverage they give to American sports leagues, this thing is going down in flames.

[rangers00]

Originally posted by eric515
And hockey?? Find me 5 guys who speak Spanish as a first, or even second, language who even care about hockey!!


That's easy.

Scott Gomez of the Devils - the first Latino to play in the NHL;
Gomez's dad & mom;
the two guys who do hockey commentaries on ESPN DOS (Latin America's ESPN2).

There you have it...

[Bleacherbutt]

It was humorous, but I have to add that the number one on my list would have to the <b>The jaded overly self-important hack who doesn't take the time to understand the game</b>.

BTW, who DOES he want to sit next to skinheads, Italian anti-Semites, rioting hoolies, racist rabble?

Maybe he should just sit at home and watch on the tube.

[eric515]

Originally posted by rangers00
That's easy.

Scott Gomez of the Devils - the first Latino to play in the NHL;
Gomez's dad & mom;
the two guys who do hockey commentaries on ESPN DOS (Latin America's ESPN2).

There you have it...

Don't you hate when your rhetorical questions are answered? :)

Do the Gomez's speak Spanish as a first or second language??

Anyway, my point in saying that is that the sport does not hold mass appeal for Latinos, and ESPN Deportes (from what I have seen) gives as much, or more highlight time to it than soccer.

[superdave]

Originally posted by da_cfo
Rant

Ollie, could you wipe up that drool on your chin, there, buddy?

[SankaCofie]

I don't know which one I hate the most... but I know that all of them can be found behind the south goal at Cardinal Stadium in Naperville quietly chatting away about their various topics semi-oblivious to the existance of a very real soccer game being played out in front of them.

[rangers00]

Originally posted by eric515
Don't you hate when your rhetorical questions are answered? :)

When asking rhetorical questions, better exaggerate them, like "500 Hispanics" or something. I certainly am not going to type 500 names, let alone the bigsoccer notepad has a max. length limit (something like ~2000 characters).


Do the Gomez's speak Spanish as a first or second language??

The Gomez were originally from Latin America (Mexico and Colomb ia). They immigrated to Alaska. Scott grew up in Alaska. The parents certainly speak Spanish as their 1st language. Scott would be a 2nd generation. He is one of the few (if not the first) Alaskans playing in the NHL.


Anyway, my point in saying that is that the sport does not hold mass appeal for Latinos, and ESPN Deportes (from what I have seen) gives as much, or more highlight time to it than soccer.
I've said it more than once, ESPN Deportes's main objective is to find an outlet in the U.S.A. for its ESPN Latin American programming, in which there is NO, ***ABSOLUTELY NONE*** Mexican Futbol. ESPN doesn't spend a dime to produce programming for ESPN Deportes, with minimal add-on fees for the American rights of Latin American events (South American championship basketball, Carribeans baseball, etc.)

Now, the Spanish versions of NBA, NFL, MLB and to a lesser extent, NHL, are also broadcasted on ESPN Latin America and ESPN DOS. What you see an ungodly amount of hockey is simply an ungodly amount of hockey shown on SportsCenter en espanol on ESPN Latin America.