What time would you like to meet for lunch? Be there at 13:00, but I don’t arrive until 14:00 to eat.
This is how Fox Sports unfairly promotes World Cup kick-off times. However, this is disrespectful, not unexpected.
For Monday’s eight-year wait for the United States game against Wales, Fox’s graphics kept saying “coverage starts at 1.”
One problem? Kick off was at 2.
While others do as well, it’s especially bad when the event in Qatar is across the world with a time difference that makes start times unusual for fans.
For Tuesday morning’s Argentina match, Fox Sports promoted coverage to begin at 4:00 a.m., although the game’s kick-off is at 5:00 a.m.
Who needs an extra hour of sleep? Additionally, subjecting fans to Alexi Lalas in the pregame is cruel and unusual punishment at any hour.
In a peak of honesty on Monday morning, working England’s breakdown of Iran, play-by-play Ian Darke, at 68 and with the chops to do whatever he wants, added the United States game will actually be at 2 p.m. start. But this is not the norm. We haven’t heard any other Fox Sports announcer do that in two days of coverage.
Of all the problems with the World Cup, this is not at the top of the list. Qatar bribed its way into hosting the event, leading to the games being moved from summer to winter, banning the sale of beer to fans in the stadium and, most recently, banning players from wearing rainbow-coloured carrying captain’s “OneLove” antidote. -discrimination bracelets with a risk of being assessed a yellow card, if so.
Follow all the 2022 World Cup action with more from the New York Post
Like NBC and the Olympics, Fox did not choose the Cup host, but it determines how to cover it. It is understood that they are there to showcase the games. But you have to be there before the fire starts, so the issues around these games have to be part of the coverage, because eventually it can be a very big problem.
First, maybe Fox Sports can tell fans the right time to show up for lunch.
Iger’s impact on ESPN
Bob Iger’s return to Disney will have ramifications on ESPN. This is likely a positive for ESPN, as Iger was a supporter during his first reign at Disney. (How could he not be as his earnings allowed him to buy a lot of other things?) Iger chose Jimmy Pitaro to head ESPN, so he’ll likely want to keep it on a similar path. Iger also has a strong relationship with the NBA, which likely bodes well for a potential continuation of Disney/ABC/ESPN’s relationship with the league when the new TV rights deals are renewed in 2025. That said, Iger didn’t jump Disney stock upon his return because he wasn’t willing to change course. … One very interesting question, “What if?” If Iger had returned as the head of Disney a year ago, would Al Michaels, who is friends with Iger, end up returning to “Monday Night Football?” It would have changed the entire landscape of the crazy NFL TV free agency we just saw.
Clicker Book Club
World Cup Read: Papa Clicker writes that, as the world looks to the 2022 World Cup, author Clemente A. Lisi’s “The FIFA World Cup, A History of the Planet’s Biggest Sporting Event,” goes into detail about each year’s key matches , the changes that have taken place over the years (for example, the introduction of the red and yellow cards and the recent use of Video Assistant Referee or VAR) and biographies of some of the game’s GOATS from 1930 to today. This book is both an enjoyable read and a handy reference. Papa Clicker, Herb Marchand, gives it a very strong 4.5 out of 5 clickers.
