Starting on Friday, Universal Sports will air the CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament. This will be the first international soccer tournament for the U.S. Women’s National Team since the World Cup in Germany last summer. This tournament will take place in Vancouver and involve teams from the Western Hemisphere including Mexico, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic.
Universal Sports will have all of the US Women’s National Team’s games in group play as well as the semifinals live. NBC Sports Network will carry the finals on January 29. In addition to airing the games on TV, they will be streamed for free at UniversalSports.com.
We have the Universal Sports press release.
Universal Sports Network Kicks Off LIVE Multiplatform Coverage of CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying Soccer Tournament with Two Teams Advancing to 2012 Summer Olympics in London
Network Adds Two-Time Olympic Gold Medalist and World Cup Champion Brandi Chastain as Analyst for Tournament
Los Angeles – January 16, 2012 – Universal Sports Network announced today production plans for its exclusive English-language telecasts of the 2012 CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying soccer tournament with coverage beginning Friday, January 20. The network’s coverage includes of all United States matches including a semi-final from the tournament, as well as a re-air of NBC Sports Network’s finals match. The network will provide tournament coverage of five matches both on-air and through free online streaming at UniversalSports.com. The tournament will take place January 19-29 from Vancouver, Canada. A full schedule is below.
Calling the network’s tournament coverage will be Glenn Davis, voice of two World Cups and part of NBC’s coverage of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, and two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time FIFA World Cup Champion Brandi Chastain. Chastain will draw from her nearly 25-year soccer career, including a 16-year tenure on the U.S. women’s national team.
In addition, Universal Sports Network will offer studio coverage with Pre-Game, Post-Game Report and Halftime Report, which will feature interviews with members of the U.S. women’s team including Abby Wambach, Hope Solo, team captain Christie Rampone and head coach Pia Sundhage.
“We look forward to showcasing this exciting event across multiple platforms and featuring the U.S. women’s national team, who have the well-earned reputation as one of the most dominating teams in international soccer,” said David Sternberg, CEO of Universal Sports. “As momentum builds to the 2012 Olympic Games in London, the CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying tournaments are yet another example of our high-caliber, world class programming that adds to the value of Universal Sports Network.”
The U.S. women’s team, currently ranked first in the FIFA World Rankings and the defending Olympic champions, are led by Solo, Wambach and Rampone, will make its first major tournament appearance since the FIFA World Cup last summer, where the Americans placedsecond after losing on penalty kicks to Japan. The United States will play Mexico, who upset the Americans in the semifinals of last year’s CONCACAF Women’s World Cup Qualifying, as well as Guatemala and the Dominican Republic in the group play of the tournament.
Universal Sports Network will also have exclusive English-language telecasts of the 2012 CONCACAF Men’s Olympic Qualifying tournament, which takes places March 22-April 2. The opening rounds will be played in Carson, Calif., and Nashville, Tenn., with the semifinals and final taking place at the new LIVESTRONG Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kansas. Telemundo will provide Spanish-language television coverage of tournament in the U.S.
Universal Sports Network/UniversalSports.com Schedule
January 20 — 10:30 p.m. LIVE, USA vs. Dominican Republic
January 22 — 7:30 p.m. LIVE, USA vs. Guatemala
January 24 — 10:30 p.m. LIVE, USA vs. Mexico
January 27 — TBD LIVE, Semifinal
January 29 — 8:00 p.m., Final (NBCSN)
January 29 — 11:00 p.m., Final (NBCSN re-air)
And that does it for this post.
