Fox Soccer Channel To Air World Cup 2018 and 2022 Announcement

Coming up next week, Fox Soccer Channel will provide extensive coverage of FIFA’s announcement on where the World Cup will be played in 2018 and 2022. The United States, the UK, and Qatar are among the candidates bidding to host the world’s biggest event. There will be programs leading up to the announcement as well as live coverage of FIFA President Sepp Blatter telling us the host countries. We have the press release from Fox Soccer Channel.

FOX SOCCER CHANNEL AND FOX DEPORTES ANNOUNCE EXTENSIVE COVERAGE OF 2018 AND 2022 FIFA WORLD CUP™ ANNOUNCEMENT

Programming Initiatives Culminate with Live Coverage of Landmark Moment in Soccer History on Thursday, December 2

Los Angeles (November 23, 2010) – Fox Soccer Channel, an Official Partner of the USA Bid Committee, and FOX Deportes, the nation’s leading Hispanic sports brand, today unveiled their extensive on-air and online coverage leading up to FIFA’s announcement of the 2018 and 2022 World Cup™ host nations on Thursday, Dec. 2.

Fox Soccer Channel offers a host of multi-media programming initiatives, culminating with Decision Day 2022: A Fox Soccer Report Special. Beginning at 9:30 a.m. on Dec. 2, this hour-long program brings viewers this historic announcement live from FIFA headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, along with interviews with leading figures in U.S. Soccer and fan reaction from viewing parties around the country. In addition, Decision Day 2022: A Fox Soccer Report Special features live Sky Sports News coverage of the latest developments in England, which is in contention to host the 2018 event.

On Wednesday, Dec. 1 at 9 p.m. ET, a 30-minute preview show – D-Day Minus 1 – is followed by Team USA: Journey to Glory, an in-depth look at the past, present and future of U.S. Soccer. Both programs repeat the morning of Dec. 2, immediately prior to Decision Day 2022: A Fox Soccer Report Special.

“As the nation’s leading soccer media brand, Fox Soccer Channel is honored to share this landmark moment in American sports history with our viewers, and support our ongoing partnership with the USA Bid Committee,” said David Nathanson, General Manager of Fox Soccer Channel.

Fox Soccer Channel has assembled an all-star talent team for Decision Day 2022: A Fox Soccer Report Special including:

• Curt Menefee: Host of FOX Sports’ 2010 UEFA Champions League Final coverage and FOX NFL SUNDAY.
• Eric Wynalda: A leading scorer in U.S. Soccer history and veteran of three FIFA World Cups™, including 1994 where he tallied the Americans’ first goal of the tournament.  Wynalda currently serves as host of Fox Soccer Channel’s UEFA Champions League coverage.
• Cobi Jones: Three-time World Cup™ veteran and member of the 1994 squad; America’s all-time leader in international caps.
• Alan Rothenberg: Former U.S. Soccer Federation President and architect of USA ’94.

FOX Deportes offers incisive interviews with high profile soccer personalities, all while keeping viewers up-to-date with around the clock information about the world’s most important soccer tournament and an in-depth analysis of FIFA’s final decision. Experts are on-hand to deliver coverage of the main event directly from Zurich, Switzerland, providing a detailed breakdown of the countries vying for the honor to host the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup™.

FOX Deportes programming includes:

• A special airing of Diario Fox Sports on Thursday, December 2^nd from 10 to 11 a.m. ET.
• Expert analysis and breakdown of all the countries vying for the title of host nation.
• Live coverage of the World Cup™ announcement from Zurich.
• Fan reaction from select U.S. cities.
• Interviews with high-profile soccer personalities.

“As the first name in Hispanic sports, FOX Deportes recognizes the significance of this decision and the potential impact it will have on the Hispanic community,” said Vincent Cordero, Executive Vice President & General Manager of FOX Deportes. “We are committed to providing our viewers with exciting coverage related to the most important sporting event in the world.”

The build-up to decision day begins today, Nov. 23, and continues with multi-platform coverage this week and next on both networks. Highlights include:

• Beginning Thursday, an on-screen graphic during all Fox Soccer Channel and FOX Deportes programming counting down the final week until FIFA’s announcement.
• A similar countdown clock on the homepages of www.FoxSoccer.com – where expert writers Ives Galarcep, Jamie Trecker and others will examine the FIFA bidding process and the prospects for hosting a second World Cup™ on American soil – as well as www.Foxdeportes.com
• Web-exclusive videos on www.Foxsoccer.com – as well as the network’s Facebook and Twitter portals –  featuring Wynalda and former U.S. National Team member Kyle Martino, who take a personal look at the potential of another World Cup™ in the United States.

In June 2010, Fox Soccer Channel became the first Official Corporate Partner of the USA Bid Committee and its efforts to bring the FIFA World Cup to the United States in 2022. In October, FOX Sports Media Group Chairman and Chief Executive Officer David Hill formally accepted an invitation to join the Bid Committee’s Board of Directors.  U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati is Chairman and Carlos Cordeiro the Vice-Chairman, while the Bid Committee’s other high profile Board of Directors include: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, comedian Drew Carey, former boxer Oscar De La Hoya, American soccer stars Landon Donovan and Mia Hamm, actors Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt, Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber, former U.S. Secretary of State Dr. Henry Kissinger, director Spike Lee and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. For more information on the Go USA Bid campaign, visit www.gobidusa.com.

And we’ll do the linkage coming up.