I know, I know. I told you I was taking a couple days off from the Euro 2008 Blog before the games resume with Wednesday’s semifinal between Germany and Turkey. But after spending more than 50 hours watching ESPN’s extensive coverage of Euro 2008 I couldn’t resist putting together a bonus blog with one major thought on the tournament:
• Andy Gray should continue being ESPN’s lead broadcaster for every major tournament, including the 2010 World Cup. It’s amazing to me how many American media bosses and editors have failed to grasp a simple idea: it’s better to cover soccer with people who 1) know the game and 2) are good at what they do. Just because you have a good delivery—Brent Musburger in 1998, Dave O’Brien in 2006—doesn’t mean you’ll know the game. And just because you know the game—Ty Keough in ‘02, Marcelo Balboa in ‘06—doesn’t mean you’ll be good at broadcasting it.
By hiring Gray, the veteran Sky Sports commentator, for Euro 2008, ESPN finally found someone who isn’t just good at both things, he’s great at them. Here’s a guy who played the game at a high level and points out all the little things that you might have missed, who loves the sport but isn’t afraid to be critical (though not shrill), who doesn’t digress into pre-packaged storylines or off-the-field nonsense, and who raises the level of his colleagues—particularly in the ESPN studio—by raising the level of discourse and (get this) talking about the game we’re watching.
Perhaps most impressive, Gray is able to look at a game and anticipate what’s coming next. In the first half of the game between Turkey and the Czech Republic, Gray pointed out that the Turks (with four midfielders) were having a hard time finding gaps to pass through the five-man Czech midfield and speculated that Turkey would soon try going over the top with longballs. Sure enough, that’s exactly what happened—and what led to the Turks bringing on an extra midfielder in the second half.
For me that ability to anticipate is what separates a really good analyst in any sport from the rest of the pack. Tommy Smyth is a pleasant guy who clearly loves the game, but he just doesn’t have that ability. When Spain’s Carles Puyol went off with an injury against Sweden, Smyth predicted that his replacement (Raúl Albiol) would go to right back while Sergio Ramos moved to Puyol’s spot at centerback. Really? Both Ramos and Albiol can play either spot, but Ramos is one of the world’s best right backs, so why would you move him? (Ramos stayed at right back.) With Portugal leading the Czechs 2-1 in the second half, Smyth predicted that incoming sub Jan Koller would replace fellow forward Milan Baros. Really? Why would the Czechs stay with one forward when they needed a goal and Baros was having a good game? (Midfielder Tomás Galásek came off instead.)
The great thing about having Gray in the ESPN booth is that we now have a standard of excellence by which we can judge other soccer broadcasters. No longer will it be O.K. to be unprepared or to butcher the names of players (which still happens with alarming frequency in the ESPN studio show). Gray isn’t perfect—he got it wrong on the non-offside call involving Italy’s Christian Panucci against the Netherlands, and he does drone on a bit about All Things Scottish—but he has proved to be the best soccer commentator in the history of American television, and I can only hope ESPN retains him for World Cup 2010.
Now that I’ve seen 24 games of Euro 2008 on ESPN (i.e., all but the four least meaningful final group-stage games), it seems like a good time to note other hits and misses in the TV coverage:
HITS:
• Just having every Euro game on live (and most of them in HD) has been revolutionary.
• Andy Gray.
• Refusing to dumb down the broadcast for non-soccer fans (which insults everyone). It’s O.K. to say football here. We know they mean soccer.
• The ESPN axis 3D video tool to analyze replays (at least when it’s working).
• Devoting time to a pre-game show and including the national anthems and postgame.
• The camera shots during games (penalty kicks excluded). You really do get to see nearly everything that matters—and on replays, too.
• A general competence among the majority of ESPN’s broadcasters, led by play-by-play men Derek Rae and Adrian Healy (even if both can rely a bit too much on cliches), studio analyst Julie Foudy and game analyst Robbie Mustoe.
MISSES:
• The strange need for the play-by-play men to read every single graphic that comes onto the screen, as if we can’t read it ourselves.
• Too many mispronunciations of names on the studio show.
• The Anglo-centric emphasis. A player may have had a solid seven-year career in German club soccer, but if he had one bad year in England you can be sure we’ll hear all about what he did in England and next to nothing about what he did in Germany. (Rae is slightly better than Healey in his open-mindedness.)
• The video angle on penalty-kick shootouts. I know this has more to do with the Euro 2008 feed than ESPN, but it’s frustrating to see only a side-view (instead of a rear view) of most penalties taken during shootouts—and almost no replays of spot-kicks.
What’s your sense of the TV coverage? Please post your thoughts below and check back on the Euro 2008 Blog Wednesday morning ...
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Comments (75) Add A Comment
Exactly! Andy Gray is great during the Champions League games... keep him for the World Cup!
Karlomarx
Chicago , IL
Total Comments (1)
Both Gray and Rae are brighspots, Smith is ok and Foudy is fairly useless. I agree, I'd love to see better angles from the spot kicks...and certainly a (any?) replays would be welcomed. Euro '08 has been a joy to watch and overall ESPN has done a fine job.
zkeeper99
Maitland , FL
Total Comments (5)
Andy Gray is great, the Rae and Healy are pretty good. Smyth and Foudy are ok. Rob Stone is awful. I may throw the remote through my TV next time I hear him say "cheeky." Rece Davis is much more tolerable.
w3wa2003
Total Comments (16)
I love that Andy Gray called out the flops that happen in the sport. It is great to hear someone call out the players for flopping. It does nto happen enough. It is the one aspect of the sport that drives me nuts.
The games in HD have been amazing. Watching the Spain/Italy and USA/Barbados games on Sunday using PIP was like night and day, not to mention the quality of play. The difference in quality between the two was crazy.
Hoosier_Daddy
Carmel , IN
Total Comments (1)
At the risk of sucking up, I'd add to the hits column:
- a regular Grant Wahl column/blog! There's a lot more soccer writing out there than there used to be, and more of it is good than ever before in this country, but it would be nice to get at least a weekly coverage of the game in the US from SI's lead soccer writer.
I still *like* Tommy Smyth a lot, but he does consistently get some small things wrong (including, bizarrely, which part of the body took a knock when a player goes down), and his weaknesses have been shown a little in this tourney.
- Marshall
Marshall G.
Newton , MA
Total Comments (5)
Now only if U.S. vs Barbados or Mexico vs Belize was nearly as interesting . .
but to get back on the subject, great coverage of 2008. Gray, Rae, and Robbie Mustoe. Smith is ok, but Foudy . . . well, she doesn't add much, if any.
h9umbc
Linthicum Heights , MD
Total Comments (2)
Very insightful !! I do agree with keeping Gray on. I also think they should expand the Champions League coverage.
jmart2075
Total Comments (8)
Tommy needs to get a new saying...bulging the ol onion bag is OK once or twice, but he uses it for almost every goal
also, has anyone noticed a difference with the announcers calling the games from the studio rather than being in attendance...in the past I've heard complaints about it, but to me it doesn't make much difference
SMH9190
Lenox , MA
Total Comments (2)
Well when you pair Gray and Rae together it's inevitable the Scottish talk is going to come up..but it never seems to be over the top and can be quite comical at times.
Spot on about Tommy Smyth..the Sergio Ramos prediction is one of the dumbest comments of the tournaments, and after Spain's most recent game I could hardly imagine Ramos flying around as a center back doing mid-air karate kicks..they would get torched.
This tournament has been one of the best in recent memory...these days off in between games are getting too boring!
VY
Saint Louis , MO
Total Comments (39)
It's fantastic that ESPN covered all of the games and even more exciting to think that perhaps we'll continue getting a major soccer tournament televised every two years instead of four.
The one thing I cannot forgive ESPN for their awful camera choices on corner kicks. I don't care what the guy's face looks like or where he placed the ball on the corner semi-circle. They took way too long after the kick to switch the camera to the front of the goal mouth. The ball was often already making contact when the camera switched forcing a scramble for the viewer to see which players were where and who the ball was heading for.
KevFlan20
Hamden , CT
Total Comments (5)
I agree, espn is doing a good job on the Euro broadcasts... now if we could only get them to go 'over-the-top' on the WC broadcasts we'd be in real soccer heaven. One question... where is the 30 minute analysis show? I mean, they have time to show all of that other garbage that no-one save for the retired or late shift people watch (I'm talking about you, world series of poker, and you too, bass-fishing tournament). They should have a bi-weekly soccer show, just like baseball tonight or NFL-live, I mean soccer is HUGE in America, its just underground.. call it Indie if you want.... anyway you slice it, the fatties at Atlanta braves games and Green bay tailgaters won't get it, but if you go to the rest of the major cities in the USA, soccer is big... it will only get bigger... so give it more coverage!
I am gald about one thing though: No more Eric Wynalda. Holy crap that guy was terrible, I remember watching the WC thinking "are they TRYING to kill the interest in the game?" its about time they got some real broadcasters in the booth. And yes, I will be pissed if they bring in Musberger "the biggest know-it-all homer in broadcasting" for the final. Don't do it espn, DON'T.
jessumm
Seattle , WA
Total Comments (9)
I used to think that ice hockey was the game that benefited most from HD ... it's not. High-level soccer (and I don't mean MLS) in HD is spine-tingling. Bravo ESPN!
QuakerFaithful
Atlanta , GA
Total Comments (1)
Tommy Smyth and Don Cherry must be cousins or something :)
jessumm
Seattle , WA
Total Comments (9)
I've only watched a handful of games from ESPN during Euro, but I do love Andy Gray, in general. He is knowledgeable, insightful and doesn't dumb things down.
billykyjoe
Saskatoon, SK
Total Comments (24)
julie foudy should not be allowed anywhere near a tv camera ever again.
SCTowny
Philadelphia , PA
Total Comments (8)
I like the fact that Andy Gray does not take it easy on the officials. If they make a bad call or anything, he doesn't hesitate to call them on it. BRAVO!
marken
Martinsburg , WV
Total Comments (1)
I love that Andy Gray called out the flops that happen in the sport. It is great to hear someone call out the players for flopping. It does nto happen enough. It is the one aspect of the sport that drives me nuts.
Hoosier_Daddy | 06/24/08, 01:20 PM
Amen to that Hoosier. I really appreciated Andy's disgust for the flops & the bad injury acting. My chief complaint about the sport is still the flops & the "roll around on the ground and be running at full steam 2 minutes later" injuries. Refs shouldn't be hesitant to book the players, like the one referee did in the Spain v Italy game.
And yes, we could use a little less "All Things Scottish" but it injects a bit of humor into the sport.
Though my one complaint about the telecasting is Julie Foudy...they need to replace her with someone who knows what they're talking about.
PackBrew42 is…
Miller Brewery, WI
Total Comments (4133)
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boltman21
Total Comments (1)
I've played soccer. I coach my kids soccer. I saw plenty of soccer live when the Cosmos were around. But this is the first time I have actually watched soccer consistently on Television. The coverage has been astoundingly good and interesting. To the point where even my wife sat down and watched the games with me.
treebeme
Holtsville, NY
Total Comments (3)
I find this quite laughable as a Scotsman and someone who must tolerate his "analysis" if I want to watch Sky's vacuous coverage of English and European football. Gray is fast becoming a caricature of himself in this country. His analysis is weak, repetitive and not in keeping with modern tactics and coaching. Just listen to him try and call zonal defence alongside man to man marking. Those of us who have not put the sound down on this drivel are forced to here the same weak points made on a regular basis by a man long having since made his point, albeit it a very flawed one.
He has a decent pitch and tone to his voice to retain interest in what he is saying, I'll give you that. But as an analyst he is mainly ignored as a serious voice on tactics and gameplans. He is unbelievably Anglo-centric, and his "chauvinism" towards bigger players in the only league he feels is worth its weight (the Premiership) is to the detriment of any kind of expert analysis of the game outside the UK. To most observers, it is an embarrassment. I can only imagine what Gray is passing off as analysis on ESPN. Of the Turkish, Croatian and Russian players playing at the Championships he would be lucky to know around 20% of the players, far less who they played for, unless there was some dubious attachment to the Premiership. This is ignorance.
Faced with having to watch Gray for 14 years, as we have, you would likely be reaching for the mute button. Please keep him Stateside. For real analysis, try and tune into Martin O'Neill on the BBC. Insightful, cutting and humourous.
Ken79
Total Comments (1)
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