A&E may decide to hire some of the on-air talent that previously did NWSL games (I wouldn't be surprised for example if they decided to hire Ann Schatz, for example), but they probably want people who have experience doing it on a professional broadcast television level (i.e. having already worked with ESPN, Fox Sports, or similar). Remember that they want to have a game that can be shown as a backup on that Lifetime time slot if the primary game gets cancelled/postponed, so it needs to be produced to the same standard as the primary TV game. That said, I do think Jen and Dan would be good hires for A&E and would keep the standard high. However some of the on-air talent from the other teams were not so good, so it's understandable why they aren't just using all the previous on-air talent.
Dean Linke routinely does quality work for ESPN, & not just soccer. Heck if you look at his twitter he's done UNC Women's Hoops, Duke Men's Lacrosse, and even Men's Basketball in just the past month. He is the current Railhawks/NCFC play by play & he had said he was looking forward to doing the Courage. I'd be really surprised if he's not good enough for A+E.
The local broadcast play by play people was a problem for viewers , it's been so unprofessional that a lot of people watch games muted , A+E can't have that.... But I understand why local people are needed, may be they should use some of the people already connected to some of the organizations and get some who may be does NCAA games. Whatever happens its exciting to see
I wasn't sure whether to mention this news in this thread or in the retirements thread, but since it's a sign of the changing media landscape: After a great deal of thought, I've decided to go into "media early retirement". Reasons & thanks/acknowledgements here to minimize tweets. pic.twitter.com/nSXNumOLIP— Hal Kaiser (@Hal_Kaiser) February 22, 2017
So, the schedule has officially been dropped, but no sign yet as to which of the two Sat4pm games each weekend will be the intended TV games... Still, it's clear what venues they prefer. Here are all the Sat4pm games (or 3pm on opening weekend) by venue: CAR: 6 total (1-Apr, 1-June**, 2-July, 2-Aug) POR: 6 total (2-Apr, 1-July, 1-Aug, 2-Sep) WAS: 6 total (1-Apr, 2-May, 1-July, 1-Aug, 1-Sep) CHI: 5 total (1-Apr, 2-May, 1-June, 1-July) ORL: 4 total (1-Apr, 1-Aug, 2-Sep) KC: 4 total (1-June, 1-July, 1-Aug, 1-Sep) HOU: 3 total (2-May, 1-Sep**) SEA: 3 total (1-May, 1-July, 1-Aug) BOS: 2 total (1-July, 1-Aug) NJ: 1 total (1-May) **no backup TV game Surprises to me include how low on the list Houston is at potential TV games, and how many KC considering none are currently schedule for Sporting Park. I would also like to get more streaming details ASAP.
I think you missed one for Orlando (or put the wrong month). They host Houston on June 17 at 4pm EST. Frankly, given the time of year they picked, Houston and Orlando should both be fewer. I can say from personal experience, that once you get past April, then afternoon games in Houston are a horrible idea. Even April can be bad.
Sat, June 17, 2017 Time Home Away Location TV/Video 4:00 pm ET FC Kansas City vs Seattle Reign FC Swope Soccer Village 4:00 pm ET Chicago Red Stars vs Washington Spirit Toyota Park 7:30 pm ET North Carolina Courage vs Boston Breakers WakeMed Soccer Park 8:30 pm ET Houston Dash vs Orlando Pride BBVA Compass Stadium 10:00 pm ET Portland Thorns FC vs Sky Blue FC Providence Park
Yeah I saw that moment later. The other 4pm game is in BOS, which I also didn't count above, so I guess I accidentally missed that weekend.
As someone who works with a system that lists all dates as dd-Mmm-yyyy, took me way too long to realize those were counts and not dates. Was really confused ♀️
Uh... how about that time Trump named his support for Houston Dash, then Paulson immediately deleted Trump's tweet leading to Jeff Plush making a public appearance?
(answer to my previous post: NWSL mentioned during a USWNT game) Here's some more confirmation of the lack of local broadcasters, plus another blow: the Lifetime announcers will be at a central studio, completely disconnected from the atmosphere and in-person viewpoints of each game. http://equalizersoccer.com/2017/03/10/kronick-can-offsite-nwsl-broadcasts-connect-to-fans/
Real shame especially from a color perspective. P by P can be done in a detached manner but the best color commentary comes from really knowing the team
I think some people (on Twitter mostly) seems to want too much, is not like Lifetime is going to be making top dollar any time soon on this, they are spending way more than any other partner would. Complains about local broadcast teams being let go??? its An Evolution , they were unprofessional and terrible at commentary. It's hypocritical that some of the same People that was watching games on MUTE are now upset the league is trying to do better
For a long time I listened to almost every Mets game. If for some reason the game was only on a national feed I listened on the radio rather than watch on tv. I wanted the guys I knew and liked, that like me, were with this team every game. Never much cared for guys parachuted in for one game who I didn't know. In fact sometimes the local guys were better than the network hired gun tho not always.
Without a doubt, some of the broadcast teams were not great. Others, however, were very good and brought a level of insight and knowledge that will be difficult to replicate. There are plenty of ways to fix the not great broadcast team situation without throwing the whole thing out. This isn't a move that saves money. Ultimately, it probably costs a lot more than having local broadcast teams. In the meantime, you lose the local insight that some (yes, not all) brought to the broadcasts. Fact is, the past has shown that fans do not like in studio broadcast teams. It is painfully obvious when broadcasters are calling a game from the same TV screen you are watching. That is not a step forward, that is a step backwards. Ultimately, this (and there are more concerning revelations to come by the way) is the type of thing that you risk running into when doing a TV deal with an organization that has little to no recent experience with broadcasting sporting events.
I'm wondering how much the broadcast studio decision came about due to time constraints. Maybe it was just easier & quicker to dump everything and throw it all in the same basket instead of trying to coordinate with the local broadcast productions of 10 different teams a month or two before the season launch. Maybe they'll bring them back next year.
I was thinking the same. Let's give Lifetime the benefit of the doubt and wait a year or two before criticizing them.