Four thoughts after Germany’s 3-2 win over Turkey in the Euro 2008 semifinals:
• Sounds like a great game. Too bad we missed it on TV. I can’t tell you how shocking it is that in the year 2008 you can lose the global broadcast feed for nearly 25 minutes of a Euro 2008 semifinal—and miss two goals and the final whistle. An ESPN spokesman tells me that the entire global feed from Basel (and not just ESPN’s feed) was lost due to a lightning strike. Okay, but why couldn’t UEFA and its clockwork Swiss (update: and Austrian) organizers hook up a back-up system and generator? What sort of conniptions must viewers have been going through in Germany and Turkey?
If we couldn’t get a feed of the game because of the lightning strike, then why could we still get a feed from Switzerland of the Basel Fan Zone (where the weather didn’t appear bad at all)? Why were we forced to read the reactions of German Fan Zone supporters to discover that Germany had scored a goal and that the final whistle had blown? And for that matter, why couldn't they just turn that Fan Zone camera onto the screen those fans were watching so the rest of us could see it? UEFA is going to have to answer a lot of questions about this global fiasco—and I wouldn’t be surprised if ESPN and other rights-holders demand some of their money back. This is the 21st-Century version of the Heidi Game.
(6:15 p.m. ET Update: Information is still coming out, but the lightning strike took place in Austria, not Switzerland, and compromised the broadcast coming from the main Euro 2008 television center in Vienna. The ESPN spokesman told me that the network normally receives three feeds, and none of them was functioning. It appears that the Swiss broadcast, which continued functioning, was not being received by ESPN.)
(6:30 p.m. ET Update: For those of you who want to learn more about the NFL's classic Heidi Game, check this out. Insert your own joke about Heidi being Swiss.)
• The Turks won’t win Euro 2008, but I may remember them more than anything else. Let’s see: Turkey gave us three ridiculous comebacks and a classic slugfest (with its undermanned B-team) against a full-strength German side before finally falling to defeat. If I wasn’t already stunned when the Turks attacked from the start and went up 1-0, I was absolutely floored when Semih Sentürk scored (while we were blacked out) to make it 2-2 in the 86th minute. Bravo to this Turkish team, which showed more heart than any team in any sport that I’ve seen in a long time.
• Philipp Lahm doesn’t waste much time, does he? Just four minutes after being skinned by Sabri Sarioglu on Turkey’s equalizer, Lahm made amends by hitting a remarkable strike on the winning goal, beating Rüstü Reçber near-post from close range. Yes, Lahm caught a break when his mark (Kazim Kazim) fell down on an apparent non-contact injury, but he kept running and scored the game-winner with a finish that was all class.
• This is why you need to send media members on-site to cover big events. I’m sure ESPN saved some money by having its broadcasters stay in Connecticut rather than being on the scene in Basel. But when stuff like this happens it can bite you in the rear. I suspect that if Derek Rae and Andy Gray had been in the stadium we could have at least heard a continuous audio broadcast of the game. (Then again, who am I to talk? I’m writing this from a couch in Baltimore.)
Through-balls: This TV fiasco makes super-efficient Switzerland (update: and Austria!) seem like sort of a banana republic, doesn’t it? ... Speaking of faulty Swiss, that was an obvious penalty that Swiss referee Massimo Busacca missed when Sabri clocked Lahm in the box in the 51st minute ... If not for Lahm’s goal, I was ready to describe this game as a Semih-final ... One good thing about the Euro 2008 schedule: there’s no useless third-place game. One of these days it would be great if the World Cup dropped it too ... Kazim Kazim had some bad luck hitting the crossbar twice in the first half. But it also was more evidence to support the Anthem-Singing Theory; Kazim no doubt offended the Soccer Gods as the only Turkish player who didn’t sing his national anthem ... A day after I heaped praise on Andy Gray, the big Scot went and had a bad game. Why should he have admitted surprise when Derek Rae said Lukas Podolski had only scored one goal in the second half of the Bundesliga season? Shouldn’t Gray have known that already? ... One positive thing about the TV: I neglected to give a thumbs-up to studio host Rece Davis in my blog post about the TV production yesterday. Davis is a pro who clearly has done his soccer homework, gets the names right and has worked his tail off to learn the game. He gets it.
Do you think this is Germany’s tournament to win now? Should Joachim Löw make some changes for the final? And did any of you throw a brick through your TV during the blackout? (Any and all good stories are welcome below.) Come back tomorrow for the next Euro 2008 Blog post ...
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Comments (122) Add A Comment
Well, actually in Germany we were able to see most of the game because German television was able to switch to the Suisse TV feed. We only missed 5 minutes and no goals.
Hador
Total Comments (108)
BTW the fault was not with Switzerland but with Austria. There was a horrible thunderstorm in Vienna and thanks to UEFA regulations ALL television links had to be broadcast via Vienna. The only exception being Suisse TV who had their own cameras and broadcasting center in the stadium.
Hador
Total Comments (108)
Grant: They were talking about Klose who only scored one goal in the past 12 Bundesliga games and were saying how it was effective his EURO form.
I don't fault Andy for not knowing this either. If I'm correct he announces for SKY which broadcasts EPL games not Bundesliga. That being said he may not know everything about the Bundesliga.
Aj2986
Towaco , NJ
Total Comments (4)
Lol, Hador, Vienna is in Austria, not Suisse.
hokiegooner
Blacksburg , VA
Total Comments (22)
In Ireland and Britain we had only a few short interruptions, like in Germany. Sounds like ESPN are selling American viewers a pile of rubbish. Also, it wasn't the Swiss' fault: there was an incredible lightning storm in Vienna (where the EURO 2008 international broadcast centre is). The storm was so large they evacuated 25,000 people from the Vienna Fan Zone. Somebody needs to get the story out in the US so that ESPN (and the media: I see SI and AP now have stories claiming 25 mins of delay) don't pass the buck to make UEFA look bad.
irelandreader
Total Comments (2)
Nevermind my post. I misread. Sorry about that..
hokiegooner
Blacksburg , VA
Total Comments (22)
@Lol, Hador, Vienna is in Austria, not Suisse.
Dude, I KNOW THAT. I was only saying that the TV problem did NOT originiate in the stadium in Switzerland. The problem was that UEFA requires ALL TV broadcasts to be routed through the internation broadcasting center for Euro 08 which is located in VIENNA. Unfortunately in Vienna they had a severe thunderstorm and the broadcasting center suffered numerous blackouts and as a result the TV feed blacked out as well.
Hador
Total Comments (108)
Yeah man. Sorry, I misread what you said. My apologies for the mixup.
hokiegooner
Blacksburg , VA
Total Comments (22)
@hookiegooner 'Nevermind my post. I misread. Sorry about that..'
You're welcome....
Hador
Total Comments (108)
And you should take back that "banana republic" comment about the Swiss: they did nothing wrong with their organisation, or their broadcasting.
irelandreader
Total Comments (2)
@hokiegooner: "Yeah man. Sorry, I misread what you said. My apologies for the mixup."
no problem I didn't see your second post before I had sent mine ;)
Hador
Total Comments (108)
Grant, it plainly says on SIs website that the lightning strike was in Vienna where the international broadcast center is. Do you even read the stories on the website for which you write?
Anhaltiner
Total Comments (3)
Ich Liebe Meine Deutsches...
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!
thehemogoblin
The University Of, OR
Total Comments (29729)
The Swiss were great - feeding their video into the german network when Vieanna fell flat. Sometimes the Eurovision Network is just a GOOD THING. Missed no goal and only a view minutes.
no_trolling_please
Total Comments (206)
IS there any way we can get Turkey some sort of special medal for playing phenomenal soccer and being without a doubt the most exciting team of Euro 2008? They deserve something. They played with incredible heart all the way through and it's a shame they won't be in the final.
j11forbes
Denver , CO
Total Comments (862)
turkey deserved the final match but germany has teken it turkey was really stronger and this time germany was lucy and fourth judge was a fanatic of germany :D
humorang
Total Comments (5)
I was watching from a biergarten in Freiburg im Breisgau (Germany) and the atmosphere was electric. After the match the city center filled up with Germans and Turks celebrating an ugly match but a great run by both sides. Viel gl??ck Deutschland!!!
dmbfantony
Campbell , NY
Total Comments (2)
Kazim Kazim or kazim kazim richards
was born in UK in London he played for bury, Brighton and hove Albion and Sheffield United before he move to Turkey to play for fenabatce but he speaks little or no Turkish his father is Turkish Cypriot that move to the UK and his mother is from Antiega in the Anglo west Indies that move to the UK as well. He could have played for three nations that play in fifa and technically also for north Cyprus that not recognised outside of turkey.
shades846
Total Comments (29)
Quoting Ray Hudson, "I need an oxygen tent."
Turkey fought to the bitter end and I didn't expect anything less from them. Who knows what would have happened on that last goal by Lahm had Kazim Kazim not slipped and fallen awkwardly on the turf. Then again perhaps justice was served as the ref missed a the call against Lahm no less that should have led to a penalty. Turkey clearly dominated the first half. If not for some bad luck (Kazim hitting the top post) Turkey could have gone into halftime with the lead. The Germans clearly came out more inspired in the second half but their overall performance left a lot to be desired. I expected them to come out firing on all cylinders and ready to put the Turks out of their own misery. Instead it was the Turks who came out inspired and ready to take the game to the Germans. If the Germans come out again with the same lackadaisical intensity in the Finals they could be in for a long night. They were fortunate to get away with that against the Turks, but against a stronger side they could have been buried by halftime. However in the Germans favor is the fact they have yet to play their best football yet have still made it to the Finals. But I don't view them as the decided favorites to win the competition given their recent form.
Barca4Life
Milwaukee , WI
Total Comments (180)
I was watching the game from a biergarten in Freiburg im Breisgau and the atmosphere was electric. We only missed about five minutes of the match before we got the Swiss feed, which Basel is only 45 minutes away by train. Good luck Germany!!!
dmbfantony
Campbell , NY
Total Comments (2)
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