The rumors about Fox Sports airing English Premier League games during NFL season are indeed true. On three Sundays, Fox will air EPL games either at 2 p.m. or 4:30 p.m. Eastern time to fill holes when it has regional NFL coverage. The games will go opposite games on CBS, but Fox is not concerned about the ratings here, it wants to be able to fill programming holes that would otherwise go to local stations.
In addition, Fox will air a one-hour special on the UFC in anticipation of its November 12th debut on the network. And Fox will air a special on college football previewing the conference championship games it will be airing the following weekend.
And Fox also announces it will carry a live English Premier League game on Super Bowl Sunday. That matchup has yet to be announced.
We have Fox’s press release below.
FOX SPORTS MAKES SINGLEHEADER SUNDAYS SIZZLE
Barclays Premier League, College Football & UFC Specials Compliment NFL Lineup
Historic “Game Before the Game” on Super Bowl Sunday is First-Ever
Live Barclays Premier League Regular Season Match on US Broadcast Television
New York, NY – This fall, as the weather cools, FOX Sports turns up the heat on NFL singleheader Sundays with a big-event lineup that includes the hottest matches in Barclays Premier League soccer, an exclusive Ultimate Fighting Championship special and an in-depth college football championship preview. All events air either immediately before or after the NFL ON FOX game assigned to a given market that day.
“FOX Sports is the destination for championship sports programming and events,” said Bill Wanger, FOX Sports Media Group EVP, Programming & Research. “We’re excited to bring viewers historic coverage of the first-ever live Barclays Premier League regular season match to air on network television next February. These unique events and specials are a terrific compliment to the day’s NFL on FOX coverage.”
FOX Sports’ regular season Barclays Premier League (BPL) coverage, a first for US broadcast television, kicks off Sunday, Sept.18 with a tape-delay match featuring Manchester United vs. Chelsea. It is the first of four marquis events showcasing some of the world’s most storied soccer clubs. In addition to the Sept. 18 match, FOX Sports airs BPL contests on Oct. 2 when Tottenham takes on Arsenal (tape-delay) and Nov. 20 when Chelsea makes its second appearance, this time against Liverpool (tape-delay). All three tape-delay games, which air either from 2:00-4:00 PM ET or 4:30-6:30 PM ET, will have aired live earlier in the day on FOX Soccer. FOX Sports’ BPL coverage culminates with broadcast television’s first-ever live Barclays Premier League match on Super Bowl Sunday. The “Game Before the Game,” which has set viewership records for FOX Soccer the past two years, airs live on FOX Sunday, Feb.5 beginning at 10:30 AM ET.
On Sunday, Oct. 30, in anticipation of the UFC’s landmark live primetime FOX debut in November, FOX Sports offers UFC PRIMETIME, an intense, one-hour, behind-the-scenes look at the fighters’ preparation leading up to the Nov. 12 main event. FOX Sports recently announced a multi-year, multi-platform rights agreement that features programming on several FOX networks including FX and FUEL TV. Featured programming includes live fights, pre and post shows, countdown shows, and a variety of UFC-produced original programs.
College football fans know that they’ll be watching history on FOX when teams square off in the inaugural Pac-12 and Big Ten Football Championship games. Leading up to the big games, FOX Sports airs the COLLEGE FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SPECIAL Sunday, Nov. 27. This hour-long preview highlights the match-ups and key players for those games and all the upcoming college football championship games. The Pac-12 Championship Game airs in primetime on FOX, Friday, Dec. 2 followed by the Big Ten Championship airing in primetime on Saturday, Dec. 3.
Following is a list of the additional scheduled events. NFL game assignments determining what time these specials air regionally are announced two weeks prior to game day.
SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 18, 2011
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE SOCCER
Manchester United vs. Chelsea
2:00 – 4:00 PM ET (Pre-NFL) OR
4:30 – 6:30 PM ET (Post NFL – including post-game show)SUNDAY OCTOBER 2, 2011
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE SOCCER
Tottenham vs. Arsenal
2:00 – 4:00 PM ET (Pre-NFL) OR
4:30 – 6:30 PM ET (Post NFL – including post-game show)SUNDAY OCTOBER 30, 2011
UFC PRIMETIME
3:00 – 4:00 PM ET (Pre-NFL) OR
4:30 – 5:30 PM ET (Post NFL – including post-game show)SUNDAY NOVEMBER 20, 2011
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE SOCCER
Chelsea vs. Liverpool
2:00 – 4:00 PM ET (Pre-NFL) OR
4:30 – 6:30 PM ET (Post NFL – including post-game show)SUNDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2011
COLLEGE FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SPECIAL
3:00 – 4:00 PM ET (Pre-NFL) OR
4:30 – 5:30 PM ET (Post NFL – including post-game show)SUNDAY FEBRUARY 5, 2012
BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE SOCCER (LIVE)
10:30 AM – 1:00 PM ET / 7:30 AM – 10:00 AM PT
That will do it.
