As we wrap up the World Cup, it’s time to hand out the awards for soccer’s ultimate event. As you know, this is the last year for ESPN and Univision before they hand off to Fox and Telemundo. Both ESPN and Univision are coming off record ratings and viewership giving their successors some numbers that will be very difficult to match in Russia based on the time difference.
And both ESPN and Univision did not skimp on coverage in their lame duck years and the viewer was the beneficiary. The networks threw their financial resources at the World Cup although no one could blame them if they decided to cut back.
Those who did well will get their due. Those who did not measure up will receive a Brazilian staple of rice and black beans called feijão. This used to be served regularly at the American school I attended in Rio de Janeiro and no one liked eating it. Now it is popular in Rio and various Brazilian cities, but depending on how it’s prepared, it can be either very tasty or extremely disgusting. Because of our incompetent cafeteria staff, the feijão or feijoada (beans, rice and sausage) was extremely disgusting so those who didn’t measure up get the school cafeteria version of feijão.
So without further delay, let’s hand out the awards for this year’s FIFA World Cup. To get an idea of how this year’s awards compares to 2010, you can see how ESPN’s coverage did four years ago right here.
HOSTS
Bob Ley and Mike Tirico were once again very strong. Ley, the soccer maven at ESPN, has the gravitas to host this event. His knowledge of the game and its history along with his commitment to the sport is welcomed by the hardcore fan.
Tirico is also good on the desk and hands off to his analysts quite well. He’s been solid on the anchor desk.
Lynsey Hipgrave is a level below Ley and Tirico and after a slow start, she ramped up well. Her best performances came during World Cup Tonight and more on that later.
Julie Foudy was horribly miscast as a secondary host on World Cup Tonight. She was better on features and interviews, but having her moderate the discussion was not a good move. She was the weakest link among the studio hosts. She is given one plate of the school cafeteria feijão.
PREGAME
UNIVISION
El Gordo y la Flaca co-hosted by Raúl De Molina and Lili Estefan normally aired before the weekday morning and mid-afternoon games during the Group Stage, Round of 16 and Quarterfinals. It aired a one-hour version before the semifinals. This was excellent television. The show’s irreverent approach to the World Cup was refreshing.
When Fox Sports launched Fox Sports 1 last year, it kept saying how the network was going to be “fun” and how it stressed “fun” in its mission statement. Well, all Fox has to do is look at El Gordo y la Flaca to see how fun can be done on TV organically.
Normally a show that talks about entertainment and a vehicle to promote the network’s telenovelas, El Gordo y la Flaca embraced the World Cup, had street interviews and just gave the viewer fun. Its offbeat attitude and relaxed atmosphere set the right tone going into each game.
ESPN
ESPN’s Match Day program leading into the games was well-produced and gave fans the in’s and out’s of each day’s games. It wasn’t El Gordo y la Flaca, but it wasn’t meant to be. The show was solid and so was the entire cast from hosts Hipgrave, Ley and Tirico to the cast of analysts.
PLAY-BY-PLAY
ESPN
If Ian Darke was the revelation of the 2010 World Cup, Jon Champion was the breakout star of 2014. His one-liners were on-target and his play-by-play was understated. He worked well off his partner Stewart Robson and they formed an excellent “B” team. They received a well-deserved semifinal assignment and hopefully we’ll hear from Champion on ESPN’ Euro 2016 coverage. Of course, you can hear Champion on NBCSN’s English Premier League coverage as part of the world feed.
Ian Darke was tremendous as always. He got the “A” assignment for ESPN as he’s been the network’s soccer voice since 2011. It was great to hear he and Steve McManaman once again. They’re a good fit together and have tremendous chemistry. Darke will continue with ESPN calling U.S. World Cup qualifiers and he’ll be the network’s main voice for Euro 2016. Beyond that is anyone’s guess.
Derek Rae and Adrian Healey were very good during their games and received quarterfinal assignments for their work.
Fernando Palomo worked mostly on Mexico games as he is ESPN’s voice for El Tri. He and Alejandro Moreno have formed a very solid broadcast team.
UNIVISION
Pablo Ramírez can call numbers out of the phone book and can make them sound exciting. Assigned to his 10th World Cup, unless he moves over to Telemundo, this will be his last event for a long time. He’s called a lot of games in his time and he will be missed as Andrés Cantor will take over in 2018. No one can call “ENNNNNN VEEEEEEE-VOOOOOHHHHH!” like Pablo.
During the World Cup Final, Univision used three play-by-play men for the game (can you imagine CBS using Jim Nantz, Ian Eagle and Greg Gumbel to call the Super Bowl?), but Ramírez got to call the second half and the last moments of the second Extra Time period as well as the winning German goal. He had his classic “GOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLL!” call as well as “ALEMANIA es el Campeon del Mundo!” and that is a great way to go out.
ANALYSTS
ESPN
STUDIO
The best analysts in ESPN’s studio were Roberto Martinez, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Michael Ballack, Taylor Twellman and Kasey Keller. Martinez gave the X’s and O’s on the field as he’s Everton’s coach in the English Premier League. Nistelrooy who’s about to become the assistant coach for the Netherlands gave precise points about his fellow Dutchmen and there were times he said, “We,” but one can’t expect total objectivity from analysts in this case.
Ballack was quite good and did his best to rip Alexi Lalas whenever possible. Their arguments on the set weren’t forced and came organically. It led to very good television.
Alexi Lalas is a troll and he seems to be on television to scoff at his partners. Capturing his personality perfectly was this animation that spoofed ESPN’s studio coverage to a T. I was hoping for more from Lexi this year, but he fit into the villain’s role and seems to revel in being a contrarian. For this, Lexi is handed three and a half bowls of horrible school cafeteria feijão.
However, if you thought Alexi was trollish, just wait until Fox brings in Eric Wynalda for its coverage in 2018.
GAME
Steve McManaman and Taylor Twellman were ESPN’s best analysts. Twellman has become very strong in the booth and can spot trends. His first-guesses during US games showed he could have had a World Cup final assignment if ESPN so chose. Macca was blunt and scolded players when they dove or when they didn’t show effort. This is what you want from an analyst who can spot things from up high. Macca and Twellman are strong analysts.
I liked Stewart Robson and Efan Ekoku as well, but the man who really impressed me was Alejandro Moreno. There were times when he was calling games and then be in the studio a night later. Moreno did his homework on all of the teams and become one of the stronger analysts on World Cup Tonight. In this writer’s opinion, Moreno was the MVP of the tournament for ESPN.
POSTGAME
WORLD CUP TONIGHT
When you watch a program from the beginning and you know you’re watching something special, you begin to cherish it and when it goes off the air, you feel a tinge of melancholy. That is the experience that was World Cup Tonight.
It began traditionally with a desk and highlights. It then went to its Last Call set complete with a coffee table and fruit. It led to Lalas’ red shoes and a Brazilian hat getting their own Twitter accounts.
In a recent edition of the Fang’s Bites podcast, Ley said Last Call was an offshoot of some of the postgame off-air discussions among the ESPN staff in South Africa in 2010 so why not bring them on-air to Brazil in 2014? We’re thankful to whomever brought this idea to fruition.
If the Men in Blazers weren’t stars before the World Cup, they became certifiable celebrities. Using a small studio that became lovingly known as the “Bob Ley Panic Room,” Roger Bennett and Michael Davies used their irreverent humor and quick wit to show why their podcast is one of the best downloads on the internet.
In addition, the Last Call set led to tremendous discussion and debate about the game, concussions, the U.S. men’s team, Brazil and anything that came up. Mike Tirico and Lynsey Hipgrave were the best in leading the discussion. The debates and discussions were allowed to evolve organically. They weren’t contrived nor were they force-fed into five-minute segments.
World Cup Tonight was a breath of fresh air and became appointment television for soccer fans. Perhaps the coffee table set can be incorporated into one of ESPN’s studio shows, but nothing will match the chemistry and the relaxed atmosphere of Last Call. It will be missed.
ONLINE
WatchESPN
There were some hiccups for WatchESPN especially when the US Men’s National team played Germany and Belgium, but overall, records were set online for the World Cup. Allowing ABC’s games to be put on ESPN3 was an extremely good move. The quality of the picture was very good and buffering problems during the Germany and Belgium aside, most of the time, WatchESPN was a great alternative for fans who could not be in front of a television.
UNIVISION DEPORTES
Univision also set online viewing records throughout the World Cup. Their app was often as much as four minutes behind the action on television, however, their picture of the same games that WatchESPN had online was often sharper on the tablet. In addition, games were free until the quarterfinal round when fans had to authenticate their cable or satellite subscriptions.
But fans not having a WatchESPN account could go to Univision Deportes’ app and they found the experience just as good as any online viewing experience.
Both apps get high marks for their performances.
GRADE
ESPN greatly improved on its coverage from 2010 working out the kinks from South Africa (remember Ally McCoist?). The network gave the World Cup the proper gravitas and sendoff for the next eight years. If 2002 and 2006 showed how badly a World Cup could be covered by an American television network, 2010 and 2014 totally reversed ESPN’s reputation among fans.
For the tremendous production, announcing, analysis and reporting, ESPN receives a very high A. It’s well deserved and worth an Emmy Award for its coverage.
FOX
Now as Fox comes into the World Cup next year with the Women’s World Cup, here are a few suggestions.
One, if you’re going to use Gus Johnson as your number one announcer, make sure he gets plenty of reps. Fox Sports 1 will become the home of MLS games next season. Assign Gus to the first half of the season so he can get totally acclimated to the pace and rhythm of the game. He has improved from his first games, but he still has a long way to go to be considered as a number one soccer announcer. Gus won’t reach the heights of Martin Tyler, Darke, Healey or Rae, but he has the potential to be a decent soccer caller. Get him on MLS.
Second, give Gus a regular partner. Warren Barton would probably be the best bet. Keep Wynalda away from the booth.
Rob Stone will be the host for Fox and he knows the game as well as anybody. Utilize him as much as possible on America’s Pregame and Fox Sports Live hosting soccer segments and leading soccer discussions. Make him the face of soccer coverage as ESPN has done with Bob Ley.
Bring in Jon Champion for Russia in 2018. He will be very good.
Rent Phil Schoen and Ray Hudson from beIN Sport for Russia. This broadcast team calls a lot of games on the network and would give Fox a lot of credibility if they’re hired for 2018.
Do not. Do not. Do not produce any more segments that dumb down soccer. And please keep Piers Morgan away. Just by giving fans the perception that he’ll be used for analysis makes fans nervous that they’ll won’t be served properly by Fox.
ESPN and NBC elected not to patronize the sport and their choices have been rewarded with ratings. Fox has to learn from its past mistakes, pick from ESPN’s best features and hope to improve on them.
Overall, Fox has large shoes to fill. They will be watched very closely and if there’s one sign of a misstep or patronizing, fans will jump all over them. Here’s hoping that the network will serve the beautiful game well over the next eight years.
