[GOREVS3000]

From the Soccer Insider:

Originally Posted by Goff

If you were frustrated by the process of trying to watch the USA-Mexico qualifier at Azteca last month (remember mun2?), you'll love the TV situation brewing for the USA-Honduras match -- a game that has massive implications for the Americans' World Cup hopes.

The Honduran federation sold the U.S. TV rights for the Oct. 10 game in San Pedro Sula to MediaPro, a Spanish-based firm that serves as a middle man for coverage that often appears on ... pay-per-view and closed circuit.

So there is a very good chance that this vital game will not appear on any of the ESPN outlets or Telemundo. Not even the cuddly mun2.

We may very well have a flashback to, say, 1979, when fans would have to pay $25 to gather at arenas and banquet halls to watch an El Salvador-Guatemala qualifier or a heavyweight title bout.

Efforts are continuing to make the game accessible to a broad audience on standard TV. ESPN did try to negotiate with MediaPro, I'm told by several sources. However, according to an ESPN contact, "The rights holder is planning to exploit the rights via a different avenue that does not include ESPN."

Sweet.

Good thing I am going to the game and not putting up with this sketchy nonsense.

[Beautiful Game 2010]

WTF. FIFA really needs to put an end to this in the future (it should have been done already). I mean no PPV World Cup Soccer allowed (qualifiers included). How can FIFA expect to grow the game in countries like the USA if they let this happen. FIFA needs to learn the lesson from boxing. Do not let a few greedy people make a profit at the expense of the sport.

[chad]

I'm having a flashback to 2001, not 1979.

[RolexEmbezzled]

Well, this sucks. And there's nothing we can do about it.

[FW__]

I love how we can get a freakin game from Cuba (on ESPN) and not one in Honduras

[NCCFBALL]

Originally Posted by GOREVS3000

From the Soccer Insider:



Sweet.

Good thing I am going to the game and not putting up with this sketchy nonsense.

That would be the english broadcast, correct? Because i'm pretty sure that Univision has the spanish broadcast rights to the US Qualifiers, I'm pretty sure one of the Univision channels (telefutura, galavision, univision) will have the game in spanish.

[SamsArmySam]

Originally Posted by RolexEmbezzled

Well, this sucks. And there's nothing we can do about it.

Agree. And I also agree that FIFA needs to do something about it. USSF should be able to control the rights to the US broadcast of a game the US team plays in. It seems sort of fundamental to the USSF's ability to do its job.

I recognize there is a need to spread some of the wealth around that US advertisers generate on a US broadcast. But there has to be a more effective mechanism than letting the Honduran FA decide who gets to buy the US rights.

[SamsArmySam]

Originally Posted by NCCFBALL

That would be the english broadcast, correct? Because i'm pretty sure that Univision has the spanish broadcast rights to the US Qualifiers, I'm pretty sure one of the Univision channels (telefutura, galavision, univision) will have the game in spanish.

That is a very good question for Goff.

[Asprilla9]

Originally Posted by NCCFBALL

That would be the english broadcast, correct? Because i'm pretty sure that Univision has the spanish broadcast rights to the US Qualifiers, I'm pretty sure one of the Univision channels (telefutura, galavision, univision) will have the game in spanish.

looks like it was both the english and spanish rights, at least initially.

Originally Posted by Goff

According to the USSF: "The Honduran federation chose to sell the U.S. television rights to the match, in both English and Spanish, to MediaPro and, to our understanding, did not place on them any obligation to resell the English-language rights to this particular game to a third party."

so unless they re-sold the spanish rights and NOT the english rights, we're looking at guaranteed PPV.

[Sam Hamwich]

I love the internet. If this turns out to be true, it's easy enough buy the feed and stream it for everyone.