Anyone know who we are getting? Derek Rae and Smyth? Are they going to send out teams to broadcast on site? Or are they going to be in the studio in Bristol?
Great question, I'd love to know the answer here. I almost wish ESPN would wise up and hire international announcers. I'm not sure I can deal with listening to Julie Foudy talk about Euro. Not a big Harkes fan either, but I guess beggars can't be choosy. Memo to ESPN: hire announcers that know more than the general soccer public about these teams & players. Its mind numbing to hear announcers repeat stuff we have been reading on soccernet or Yahoo sports for weeks.... BRING SOME NEW INSIGHT TO THE TABLE.... sorry for the rant...
Well, you're complaint (rant) is a bit outdated. Shaka Hislop signed on with ESPN recently (I saw him on ESPN chat a while back), so I assume that means he'll be an analyst for Euro 2008. I think also Frank LeBeouf (sp?) and a couple of other good analysts have joined the team.
Agree. I understand that ESPN wants to use American announcers in competitions involving the US so that it might be more palatable to non-soccer viewers. But when its only European sides, I don't know why you need an American voice to relate it to the common sports fan. I wish they'd use the internation feed. I was in South Africa during WC '02 and they used the international feed. I hope they at least send them to the tourney to broadcast the games.
Before you all get worried about them using American announcers, I have read on other forums they are using the ESPN International guys. The ones who cover the Champions League ( ESPN International) are gonna produce the game and use their announcers to call the game. ESPN USA is going to piggy back their feed and use their announcers rather than using their own announcers. So in short no Julie Foudy or John Harkes they will be doing the MLS as always.
Hmmm, why would Hislop know more about European teams than either Harkes or Jules F.? It's not like England will be there.... I'll be happy with the ESPN International guys, but I'll more than likely will turn the sound off anyway. And since I'm on that tangent, once I was able to get an intertnet feed for a game (I think it was a Setanta signal), that had no commentary whatsoever, only the crowd and the noise from the pitch. It was paradise! I wish all soccer feeds would come with a choice to listen to announcers or to turn them off.
I don't know if this is meant as a serious question, but Hislop is a good analyst. I never heard of the other 2 guys you mentioned...
The best anaylsts in ESPN are janusz michallik, tommy smyth and the announcer with an irish-sounding accent...he's quite old and he is american. I think he used to be a goalie in america way back in the day. He and janusz are the most knowledgeable on a wide range of things and tommy smyth is pretty good too and very accurate with his predictions.
Rae is terrific. He has a top-notch pedigree, too. He's announced England internationals for the BBC before moving from teh UK to US. Smyth is a little over the top and is such a ManU homer that he can be a little much. But I'll take him over Harkes.
I am turned off by Rae's sucking up to the big names and his constant use of pet phrases and random info about teams and players. I am talking about another guy...I don't think it's Seamus, but another guy. He used to be a goalie in america and is well respected there
You hate contant use of pet phrases, but like Tommy Smyth? "bulge of the old onion bag" "oh, he should've buried it" (uttered every time a player doesn't find the corner of the goal on a shot from less than 30 yards away ) There are numerous others but I can't remember since I haven't heard him in a while.
And miss the chanting? that's the best part of the sound! You aren't missing a thing. All these people that have been mentioned on these threads are a million times better than the mentally impaired who broadcast football in the US in Spanish (not counting feeds that come from other countries shown in the US, ie TyC from Argentina).
Derek Rae said yesterday during the Champions League Final, that he and Smith would be there in the commentary box for the Euro 2008 opening game. So I'm assuming Rae and Smith are doing the games, I doubt they are doing all of them. I hope JP D. is doing the games as well, but God please no Wynalda or Foudy or else I'll kill myself.
He was fired by ESPN for comments that he made, at a bar, about Jim Rome. ESPN said he will not be returning.
Who? Winnie Wynalda? I'm glad, he's an ass and he deserves it. I think he believes that he is the American Maradona. Just like Maradona believes he owns Argentine football, he thinks he is the ultimate authority on American football and he owns the sport in the States. Built on an ego from playing in the Bundesliga and scoring the first goals for the US in WC 94 and MLS. He thinks he has the right to criticize anything and anyone that isn't to his pleasing.
There is a difference between those two awful: Winnie - I own US football, my opinion is the ultimate law Rome just gives football a bad reputation in this country Rome is the bigger evil.