FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015 on Canadian TV and Radio

The 2015 edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup begins tonight with Canada taking on China from Edmonton. TSN, CTV and RDS will have live coverage of every game throughout the tournament. There will also be extensive coverage online at TSN.ca/FIFA

All Canadian games will be shown on CTV and RDS and through their respective apps/online streaming service. Encore presentations can be seen the following day on TSN and TSN GO. All 52 games will be covered across CTV and the TSN and RDS networks and their GO platforms with an extensive pre-game show for all matches and prime-time highlight recap shows during the tournament.

TSN has built a fancy new studio for World Cup coverage at their HQ in Toronto and thankfully, it comes without any gigantic touchscreens or huge floor monitors. TSN will take their coverage from FIFA’s world feed which will be the biggest and most advanced broadcast in women’s soccer. Europe’s top soccer directors have been flown in to spearhead the coverage of each match, which will be covered by 20 cameras throughout the stadiums, up from 16 for the previous Women’s World Cup. Two additional cameras will be added for the opening game as well as the semifinals and final — one high above in a helicopter and one not as high with the cable camera we are all familiar with by now.

TSN will have an extensive team bring viewers all the action: in-studio in Toronto will be Jennifer Hedger hosting with Kristian Jack and Clare Rustad breaking down the games. On-site will be host James Duthie, Kara Lang and TSN’s top commentary team Luke Wileman and Jason deVos calling all Canada matches. Sheri Forde reports for Sportscentre and in what will be a must-miss segments, Cabbie and Kate McKenna do “social reporting”.

TSN has produced more than forty original features for the World Cup, with Brian Williams being wheeled out to head up the big interviews and specials. They will air throughout the tournament during game coverage and Sportscentre and can also be found online. A list of them can be found here.

If you don’t have TSN, Fox will cover 16 games throughout the tournament including the first semifinal, third-place game and the final on July 5. Unfortunately none of the 16 will be Canadian games.

The full television schedule can be found in this previous post.

Throughout the tournament, six TSN Radio stations across Canada are joined by CFAX 1070 in Victoria, AM 1150 in Kelowna, and CKOC 1150 in Hamilton, as well as Sirius/XM 167 to deliver live radio coverage of the biggest women’s sporting event in the world. Fans can also listen live on TSN GO and on TSN.ca/Radio.

In a big month for soccer on TSN, they continue to provide live coverage of every match of the FIFA U-20 World Cup currently going on in New Zealand. That schedule can be found at TSN.ca.

2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup TV Schedule

With matches from Vancouver to Moncton, hopefully soccer fans all across the country can make it out to at least one Women’s World Cup game, but obviously none of us will make all of them. Amazingly, CTV/TSN and FOX are both producing an unprecedented amount of live soccer for a Women’s World Cup. Here is the full match schedule, with many games available on CTV and FOX. All times are eastern.

Saturday 6/6, 6:00pm – Canada v. China (from Edmonton) – CTV
Saturday 6/6, 9:00pm – New Zealand v. Netherlands (from Edmonton) – TSN1/3/4
Sunday 6/7, 1:00pm – Norway v. Thailand (from Ottawa) – CTV, FOX
Sunday 6/7, 4:00pm – Germany v. Ivory Coast (from Ottawa) – TSN, FOX
Monday 6/8, 4:00pm – Sweden v. Nigeria (from Winnipeg) – TSN, FOX
Monday 6/8, 7:00pm – Cameroon v. Ecuador (from Vancouver) – TSN2
Monday 6/8, 7:30pm – United States v. Australia (from Winnipeg) – TSN1/3/4
Monday 6/8, 10:00pm – Japan v. Switzerland (from Vancouver) – TSN1/3/4
Tuesday 6/9, 1:00pm – France v. England (from Moncton) – TSN, FOX
Tuesday 6/9, 4:00pm – Columbia v. Mexico (from Moncton) – TSN
Tuesday 6/9, 4:00pm – Spain v. Costa Rica (from Montreal) – TSN2, FOX
Tuesday 6/9, 7:00pm – Brazil v. South Korea (from Montreal) – TSN
Thursday 6/11, 4:00pm – Germany v. Norway (from Ottawa) – TSN
Thursday 6/11, 6:00pm – China v. Netherlands (from Edmonton) – TSN
Thursday 6/11, 7:00pm – Ivory Coast v. Thailand (from Ottawa) – TSN2
Thursday 6/11, 9:00pm – Canada v. New Zealand (from Edmonton) – CTV
Friday 6/12, 5:00pm – Australia v. Nigeria (from Winnipeg) – TSN
Friday 6/12, 7:00pm – Switzerland v. Ecuador (from Vancouver) – TSN
Friday 6/12, 8:00pm – United States v. Sweden (from Winnipeg) – CTV, FOX
Friday 6/12, 10:00pm – Japan v. Cameroon (from Vancouver) – TSN
Saturday 6/13, 1:00pm – France v. Colombia (from Moncton) – TSN, FOX
Saturday 6/13, 4:00pm – England v. Mexico (from Moncton) – CTV, FOX
Saturday 6/13, 4:00pm – Brazil v. Spain (from Montreal) – TSN
Saturday 6/13, 7:00pm – South Korea v. Costa Rica (from Montreal) – TSN
Monday 6/15, 4:00pm – Ivory Coast v. Norway (from Moncton) – TSN2
Monday 6/15, 4:00pm – Thailand v. Germany (from Winnipeg) – TSN, FOX
Monday 6/15, 7:30pm – Netherlands v. Canada (from Montreal) – CTV
Monday 6/15, 7:30pm – China v. New Zealand (from Winnipeg) – TSN
Tuesday 6/16, 5:00pm – Ecuador v. Japan (from Winnipeg) – TSN
Tuesday 6/16, 5:00pm – Switzerland v. Cameroon (from Edmonton) – TSN2
Tuesday 6/16, 8:00pm – Nigeria v. United States (from Vancouver) – CTV, FOX
Tuesday 6/16, 8:00pm – Australia v. Sweden (from Edmonton) – TSN2
Wednesday 6/17, 4:00pm – Mexico v. France (from Ottawa) – TSN, FOX
Wednesday 6/17, 4:00pm – England v. Colombia (from Montreal) – TSN2
Wednesday 6/17, 7:00pm – Costa Rica v. Brazil (from Moncton) – TSN1/3/4
Wednesday 6/17, 7:00pm – South Korea v. Spain (from Ottawa) – TSN2

Round of 16
Saturday 6/20, 4:00pm (from Ottawa) – CTV
Saturday 6/20, 7:30pm (from Edmonton) – CTV
Sunday 6/21, 1:00pm (from Moncton) – TSN
Sunday 6/21, 4:00pm (from Montreal) – CTV
Sunday 6/21, 7:30pm (from Vancouver) – CTV
Monday 6/22, 5:00pm (from Ottawa) – TSN
Monday 6/22, 8:00pm (from Edmonton) – TSN
Tuesday 6/23, 10:00pm (from Vancouver) – TSN

Quarterfinals
Friday 6/26, 4:00pm (from Montreal) – TSN, FOX
Friday 6/26, 7:30pm (from Ottawa) – CTV, FOX
Saturday 6/27, 4:00pm (from Edmonton) – CTV
Saturday 6/27, 7:30pm (from Vancouver) – CTV

Semifinals
Tuesday 6/30, 7:00pm (from Montreal) – CTV, FOX
Wednesday 7/1, 7:00pm (from Edmonton) – CTV

Medal Round
Saturday 7/4, 4:00pm – Third Place Game (from Edmonton) – TSN, FOX
Sunday 7/5, 7:00pm – Championship Final (from Vancouver) – CTV, FOX

FIFA Extends Bell Media World Cup TV Rights Through 2026

CBC and Sportsnet will be shut out of broadcasting the World Cup until 2030, at the earliest. In a surprise announcement yesterday that nobody was expecting, FIFA said they were extending their television contracts in Canada with CTV/TSN/RDS and in the US with Fox Sports and Telemundo without a bidding process.

Back in 2011, Bell Media won the World Cup rights from 2015 to 2022 which includes World Cup’s in Russia, Qatar, and the Women’s World Cup later this year in Canada, as well as numerous smaller tournaments. This extension adds the 2026 World Cup to the agreement along with the following tournaments: Women’s World Cup 2023, U20 World Cup 2023 and 2025, U17 World Cup 2023 and 2025, Beach Soccer World Cup 2023 and 2025, Futsal World Cup 2024, U20 Women’s World Cup 2024 and 2026, U17 Women’s World Cup 2024 and 2026, and FIFA Confederations Cup 2025.

“We are delighted to extend our partnership with FIFA and are proud to be the Canadian home of FIFA tournaments for the next 12 years,” said Phil King, President, CTV Programming and Sports. “This is another big win for Bell Media and for soccer fans in Canada. We are ready to welcome the world to this summer’s FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP CANADA 2015™ and are looking forward to showcasing the beautiful game for years to come.”

There is literally only one reason I can think of as to why FIFA would extend their agreements with these two North American broadcasters without the usual bidding process — a make-good gesture for when the 2022 Qatar World Cup will be moved from summer to the fall or winter. In the summer, the World Cup would be going against little other sports programming. With a move to the fall or winter, even with the time difference, World Cup games would clash with NFL and college football among other big-time programming.

Even more puzzling is awarding rights to a World Cup that has no location yet. There is a strong possibility that the USA and/or Canada could host the 2026 World Cup, which would’ve sparked a massive bidding war for record ratings, and we all know FIFA loves money. Now, this could be a major steal for Bell and Fox, something that no doubt is pissing off the ESPN suits.

correcting: Did FIFA just grant rights to WC2026 without opening it up to bidding? #typicalFIFA

— Bob Ley (@BobLeyESPN) February 12, 2015

As for CBC or Sportsnet, there is certainly little chance either network could afford FIFA rights anytime soon, but 2030 is a long time away in the sports media world, so maybe they’ll have a shot then.

TSN & RDS Grab Rights To UEFA Champions & Europa League From 2015

I’ve given TSN shit over the years for calling themselves The Home of Soccer in Canada despite not having FIFA tournaments, the UEFA Champions League and barely showing any non-Canadian MLS action. Well, it may be time to eat my toque. MLS and EPL games on the network increased with the addition of the three new feeds earlier this year (though still not enough to show a majority of MLS playoff games), TSN has the FIFA Men’s and Women’s World Cups beginning next year and now, TSN and RDS announced today they are the home of the UEFA Champions League and Europa League beginning in 2015.

In the multi-year agreement, TSN will broadcast up to 16 games each week during the group stage and extensive coverage of the knockout rounds and both finals. RDS will cover three games live each week.

In an unusual joint venture, beIN Sports Canada will show over 55 Champions games during the year and more than 90 Europa games providing Canadians will more European high-level football than ever before.

The deal also includes broadcast rights for games to be on TSN Radio across the country.

This huge get for TSN can easily be correlated to the Rogers multi-bazillion dollar NHL deal. Not wanting to speculate, but no doubt Sportsnet didn’t have the money to match what TSN was offering. It will be interesting to see how the EPL rights fall for the 2016 contract.

— Dan, @SportsonCanadianTV

MLS Cup Final and FIFA Women’s World Cup Draw This Weekend on TSN

The six-month countdown to the FIFA Women’s World Cup to be held in Canada begins this weekend with the official draw live from Gatineau, Quebec. TSN and owner Bell Media signed a seven-year deal recently to broadcast all FIFA events beginning with next year’s Women’s World Cup.

Live from the Canadian Museum of History, TSN’s coverage begins at 12pm ET on Saturday on TSN1/3/4 following their 10am English Premier League coverage. The draw will also be streamed online via TSN GO and in French-language on RDS. Following the one-hour draw, TSN delivers 30 minutes of post-draw discussion and analysis at 1pm, including interviews with coaches, players and tournament ambassadors in Gatineau, among them Canada’s women’s national team coach John Herdman and captain Christine Sinclair.

James Duthie and Jennifer Hedger will host the coverage from Gatineau. They will have Jason deVos and Kara Lang beside them providing expert analysis and opinion.

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Sunday afternoon TSN1/4/5 will have ESPN’s full coverage of the 2014 MLS Cup Final featuring the Los Angeles Galaxy taking on the New England Revolution from the StubHub Centre in California live from 3pm ET. The game was also be available online via TSN GO and on RDS2 for French-language viewers.

Commentator Adrian Healey, analyst Taylor Twellman and reporter Mónica Gónzalez will call the match with host Max Bretos, Alexi Lalas and Kasey Keller, providing pregame, halftime and post-game studio coverage from site.  During MLS Cup 2014, ESPN will debut a graphic telestration system that tracks the movement of players in real-time. The visual graphic, created by ChryonHego, is displayed on-screen, either during live play or in a replay, spotlighting key players and enabling viewers a better grasp of the strategy and in-game spatial movements used by the teams. MLS commissioner Don Garber will be interviewed on the ESPN set at halftime also.

As usual, MLS will struggle to get casual viewers going up against the NFL, but really, what other choice do they have? If it’s not NFL on Sundays as ratings competition, it would be college football on Saturday.

Premier League 2014-15 Schedule: The First Three Months

If you’ve been struggling the past two months since the World Cup finished and your soccer cravings haven’t been fulfilled by the mostly horrible event that was the International Champions Cup, fear not, for the English Barclay’s Premier League returns this weekend.

TSN and Sportsnet will again go 50/50 on games during the season. Hopefully with the addition of three channels to TSN beginning next Monday, it means TSN will be showing less or no online-only games this season. As a result of the new channels, TSN have only released their schedule for the first two weeks. Sportsnet have their schedule set until the beginning of December with the usual slate of games spread across Sportsnet regional channels, Sportsnet World, Sportsnet World Online NOW and one game on Sportsnet 360. All the familar faces will return to each channel for the pre- and post-game shows.

NBC Sports has released their schedule for the first three months of the season and 11 games will be shown over-the-air on NBC. US and Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard has been signed by NBC for a multi-year agreement to provide analysis for them during the season, both in-studio and in the booth.

The full schedule is below. All times are Eastern and as always, are subject to change.

2013–14 Premier League TV Schedule: December

EDIT: Appears there is some uncertainty with the schedule for the final weekend of December. Firstly, Sportsnet has Spurs-Stoke listed as a Saturday game when it’s actually on Sunday. TSN didn’t have said game listed in their press release but do have it listed on their site (which would give them six games for the week instead of the normal five). Sportsnet is also missing Sunday completely from their schedule which would be Newcastle-Arsenal and Chelsea-Liverpool. Will try and find the correct information and update when possible.

Tuesday December 3

Crystal Palace vs. West Ham — 3pm TSN2

Wednesday December 4

Sunderland vs. Chelsea — 2:45pm Sportsnet East and Ontario
Southampton vs. Aston Villa — 2:45pm Sportsnet West and Pacific
Stoke City vs. Cardiff City — 2:45pm Sportsnet 360
Manchester United vs. Everton — 2:45pm TSN2
Liverpool vs. Norwich — 2:45pm TSN.ca
Arsenal vs. Hull City — 2:45pm TSN.ca
Swansea vs. Newcastle — 2:45pm TSN.ca
West Bromwich vs. Manchester City — 3pm Sportsnet One
Fulham vs. Tottenham — 3pm Sportsnet World

Saturday December 7

Manchester United vs. Newcastle — 7:45am Sportsnet
Liverpool vs. West Ham United — 10am Sportsnet
Stoke City vs. Chelsea — 10am SN World Online
West Bromwich vs. Norwich City — 10am Sportsnet World
Southampton vs. Man City — 10am TSN2
Crystal Palace vs. Cardiff — 10am TSN.ca
Sunderland vs. Tottenham — 12:30pm TSN2

Sunday December 8

Fulham vs. Aston Villa — 8:30am TSN2
Arsenal vs. Everton — 11am Sportsnet World

Monday December 9

Swansea vs. Hull — 3pm TSN

Saturday December 14

Man City vs. Arsenal — 7:45am TSN
Chelsea vs. Crystal Palace — 10am Sportsnet
Everton vs. Fulham — 10am Sportsnet World
Cardiff City vs. West Bromwich — 10am SN World Online
Newcastle vs. Southampton — 10am TSN
West Ham vs. Sunderland — 10am TSN2
Hull vs. Stoke — 12:30pm TSN2

Sunday December 15

Norwich City vs. Swansea City — 8:30am Sportsnet World
Aston Villa vs. Man United — 8:30am TSN2
Tottenham vs. Liverpool — 11am Sportsnet World

Saturday December 21

Liverpool vs. Cardiff City — 7:45am Sportsnet
West Bromwich vs. Hull City — 10am Sportsnet World
Stoke City vs. Aston Villa — 10am Sportsnet
Man United vs. West Ham — 10am TSN
Fulham vs. Man City — 10am TSN2
Sunderland vs. Norwich — 10am TSN.ca
Crystal Palace vs. Newcastle — 10am TSN.ca

Sunday December 22

Southampton vs. Tottenham — 8:30am Sportsnet World
Swansea vs. Everton — 11am TSN2

Monday December 23

Arsenal vs. Chelsea — 3pm Sportsnet

Thursday December 26

Hull City vs. Manchester United — 7:45am Sportsnet
West Ham United vs. Arsenal — 10am Sportsnet
Everton vs. Sunderland — 10am Sportsnet World
Aston Villa vs. Crystal Palace — 10am SN World Online
Newcastle vs. Stoke City — 10am SN World Online
Chelsea vs. Swansea — 10am TSN2
Tottenham vs. West Brom — 10am TSN.ca
Cardiff vs. Southampton — 10am TSN.ca
Norwich vs. Fulham — 10am TSN.ca
Man City vs. Liverpool — 12:30pm TSN2

Saturday December 28

West Ham vs. West Brom — 7:45am TSN2
Aston Villa vs. Swansea City — 10am SN World Online
Norwich vs. Man United — 10am TSN2
Man City vs. Crystal Palace — 10am TSN.ca
Hull vs. Fulham — 10am TSN.ca
Cardiff City vs. Sunderland — 12:30pm Sportsnet

Sunday December 29

Everton vs. Southampton — 8:30am TSN.ca
Tottenham vs. Stoke City — 10am TBD
Newcastle United vs. Arsenal — 10am TBD
Chelsea vs. Liverpool — 10am TBD

2013–14 Premier League TV Schedule: November

Saturday November 2

Newcastle vs. Chelsea — 8:45am Sportsnet
Stoke City vs. Southampton — 11am Sportsnet
Hull City vs. Sunderland — 11am Sportsnet World
Fulham vs. Manchester United — 11am TSN
Manchester City vs. Norwich — 11am TSN2
West Brom vs. Crystal Palace — 11am TSN.ca
West Ham vs. Aston Villa — 11am TSN.ca
Arsenal vs. Liverpool — 1:30pm Sportsnet

Sunday November 3

Everton vs. Tottenham — 8:30am TSN2
Cardiff City vs. Swansea — 11am Sportsnet World

Saturday November 9

Liverpool vs. Fulham — 10am Sportsnet
Crystal Palace vs. Everton — 10am Sportsnet World
Chelsea vs. West Brom — 10am TSN2
Aston Villa vs. Cardiff City — 10am TSN.ca
Southampton vs. Hull City — 10am TSN.ca
Norwich vs. West Ham — 12:30pm TSN2

Sunday November 10

Tottenham vs. Newcastle — 7am TSN
Sunderland vs. Manchester City — 9am Sportsnet
Manchester United vs. Arsenal — 11am Sportsnet
Swansea vs. Stoke City — 11am Sportsnet World

Saturday November 23

Everton vs. Liverpool — 7:45am Sportsnet
Newcastle vs. Norwich — 10am Sportsnet
Hull City vs. Crystal Palace — 10am Sportsnet World
Arsenal vs. Southampton — 10am TSN2
Fulham vs. Swansea — 10am TSN.ca
Stoke City vs. Sunderland — 10am TSN.ca
West Ham vs. Chelsea — 12:30pm TSN2

Sunday November 24

Manchester City vs. Tottenham — 8:30am TSN
Cardiff City vs. Manchester United — 11am Sportsnet World

Monday November 25

West Bromwich vs. Aston Villa — 3pm Sportsnet World

I’ll include the Saturday November 30 games with the December update, as it just makes sense to do so.

FIFA World Cup Qualifying: Four Days, Forty Games*

UPDATE: Sportsnet games confirmed for Tuesday, as well as one on GolTV.

With the addition of beIN Sport Canada streaming online for free (limited time only, see here for details), there is a plethora of options for Canadian football fans in the current round of 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches.

Sportsnet, Sportsnet World Online, GolTV and beIN Sport Play will cover qualifiers from Europe, CONCACAF, South America and Africa with numerous countries looking to secure their place alongside Brazil, Australia, Japan, USA, Iran, South Korea, Netherlands, Italy, Costa Rica and Argentina.

* May or may not be 40 games available, I was just going with a catchy title.

Friday October 11

Armenia vs. Bulgaria — 11am Sportsnet World
Croatia vs. Belgium — 12pm Sportsnet
Netherlands vs. Hungary — 1:30pm SN World Overflow | SN World Online
Bosnia-Herzegovina vs. Liechtenstein — 2pm SN World Overflow | SN World Online
England vs. Montenegro — 2:30pm Sportsnet
Germany vs. Republic of Ireland — 2:30pm Sportsnet One
Greece vs. Slovakia — 2:30pm Sportsnet World
Albania vs. Switzerland — 2:30pm SN 360 | SN World Overflow | SN World Online
Luxembourg vs. Russia — 2:30pm SN World Overflow | SN World Online
Andorra vs. Romania — 2:30pm SN World Overflow | SN World Online
Estonia vs. Turkey — 2:30pm SN World Overflow | SN World Online
Denmark vs. Italy — 2:45pm RAI International
Portugal vs. Israel — 3:40pm GolTV
Spain vs. Belarus — 4:30pm Sportsnet 360
Honduras vs. Costa Rica — 4:45pm beIN Sport Play
Venezuela vs. Paraguay — 4:45pm beIN Sport Play
Colombia vs. Chile — 4:45pm beIN Sport Play
Ecudaor vs. Uruguay — 4:45pm beIN Sport Play
Argentina vs. Peru — 7pm beIN Sport Play
Sweden vs. Austria — 7pm GolTV (TD)

Saturday October 12

Burkina Faso vs. Algeria — 11:45am beIN Sport Play
Ivory Coast vs. Senegal — 12:45pm beIN Sport Play

Sunday October 13

Ethiopia vs. Nigeria — 8:45am
Tunisia vs. Cameroon — 12:45pm

Tuesday October 15

Ghana vs. Egypt — 11:45am beIN Sport Play
Azerbaijan vs. Russia — 12:30pm Sportsnet
Greece vs. Liechtenstein — 12:30pm Sportsnet One
Lithuania vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina — 12:30pm Sportsnet 360
Portugal vs. Luxembourg — 12:30pm Sportsnet World
Hungary vs. Andorra — 2pm Sportsnet World Online
Switzerland vs. Slovenia — 2pm Sportsnet World Online
Romania vs. Estonia — 2pm Sportsnet World Online
Turkey vs. Netherlands — 2pm Sportsnet World Online
Bulgaria vs. Czech Republic — 2:15pm Sportsnet World Online
Serbia vs. Macedonia — 2:30pm Sportsnet World Online
Sweden vs. Germany — 2:40pm GolTV
Belgium vs. Wales — 2:45pm Sportsnet World Online
Italy vs. Armenia — 2:45pm Sportsnet World Online | RAI International
England vs. Poland — 3pm Sportsnet
Spain vs. Georgia — 3pm Sportsnet 360
France vs. Finland — 3pm Sportsnet World
Chile vs. Ecuador — 6:30pm beIN Sport Play
Uruguay vs. Argentina — 6:30pm beIN Sport Play
Paraguay vs. Colombia — 7:15pm beIN Sport Play
Panama vs. USA — 9:30pm beIN Sport Play
Jamaica vs. Honduras — 9:30pm beIN Sport Play

2013–14 Premier League TV Schedule: October

I missed the first week, and this weekend is the international break. Better late than never, here is the EPL Premier League schedule for the rest of October.

Saturday October 19

Newcastle vs. Liverpool — 7:45am on Sportsnet
Chelsea vs. Cardiff City — 10am on Sportsnet
Swansea City vs. Sunderland — 10am on Sportsnet World
Stoke City vs. West Bromwich — 10am on Sportsnet World Online
Manchester United vs. Southampton — 10am on TSN
Arsenal vs. Norwich — 10am on TSN.ca
Everton vs. Hull City — 10am on TSN.ca
West Ham vs. Manchester City — 12:30pm on TSN

Sunday October 20

Aston Villa vs. Tottenham — 11am on Sportsnet World

Monday October 21

Crystal Palace vs. Fulham — 3pm on TSN

Saturday October 26

Crystal Palace vs. Arsenal — 7:45am on Sportsnet
Liverpool vs. West Bromwich — 10am on Sportsnet
Norwich City vs. Cardiff City — 10am on Sportsnet World
Manchester United vs. Stoke City — 10am on TSN
Aston Villa vs. Everton — 10am on TSN.ca
Southampton vs. Fulham — 12:30pm on TSN2

Sunday October 27

Sunderland vs. Newcastle — 9:30am on TSN2
Chelsea vs. Manchester City — 12pm on Sportsnet World
Tottenham vs. Hull City — 12pm on Sportsnet One
Swansea vs. West Ham — 12pm on TSN.ca

beIN Sport is finally available in Canada… kind of

(Temporary) good news, everyone!

Good news and bad news friends… you can now watch beIN Sport broadcasts here in Canada in lovely HD.

The caveats: 1) you’ll only be able to watch online, and 2) this service is free, but only until the end of the year.

The Miami-based sports network has been despised by Canadians since the day they formed as we have been unable to watch popular soccer leagues such as La Liga and Serie A due to the networks inability to get carriage in Canada.

Much has been written about the failure of beIN to provide Canadians with an option to watch the many leagues that beIN have the right to — Serie A, La Liga, Ligue 1, nPower Championship, Capital One Cup, Copa del Rey and FIFA World Cup qualification games for certain CONCACAF and CONMEBOL, just to name a few.

Canada Soccer News published a fantastic article in August which revealed the CRTC has had zero communication from beIN in regards to getting their channel on Canadian televisions. World Soccer Talk interviewed a beIN deputy managing director just last month who said they were “working very hard” and that they need to find a sponsor to help deal with the very particular regulatory environment in Canada. Nearly every soccer post on this site has comments asking about what’s going on with beIN.

A few questions remain though. 1) Why are they only starting this service now and not once they realized it would take a considerable amount of time to get their network on the air? 2) How much are they going to charge for a subscription once the free trial ends January 6th?

To view the free live streaming, head to www.beinsportplay.ca to register and use the promo code ‘beINCanada’. Testing it this morning, the quality is fantastic on my TV, tablet and iPhone. Whether I want to give them my money after fucking soccer fans around for this long, and providing their oh so generous three month free trial period remains to be seen.

FIFA World Cup Qualifying Schedule: September 6

A huge installment of FIFA World Cup qualifiers on the schedule for tomorrow, both on television and online. All times are ET.

Russia vs. Luxembourg — 10am Sportsnet
Czech Republic vs. Armenia — 11:45am Sportsnet World
Georgia vs. France — 2:15pm SN World Online / 9:30pm Sportsnet World (TD)
England vs. Moldova — 2:30pm Sportsnet
Italy vs. Bulgaria — 2:30pm Sportsnet One
Serbia vs. Croatia — 2:30pm Sportsnet World
Scotland vs. Belgium — 2:30pm Sportsnet 360
Germany vs. Austria — 2:30pm SN World Online
Finland vs. Spain — 2:30pm SN World Online / 5:30pm Sportsnet World (TD)
Republic of Ireland vs. Sweden — 2:45pm  GolTV
Northern Ireland vs. Portugal — 2:45pm SN World Online /  7:30pm Sportsnet World (TD)
Poland vs. Montenegro — 2:45pm SN World Online
Liechtenstein vs. Greece — 2:45pm SN World Online

New Premier League TV Contract; Sportsnet 360 Usher in new Era for Canadian Soccer Viewers

This season Canadian soccer fans will see more live Premier League and Champions League matches than ever before. This is due to two different changes from a year ago. The first is a new Premier League contract with TSN and Sportsnet that will see each air 190 of the Premier League’s 380 matches. The other is Rogers’ acquisition of theScore and launch of Sportsnet 360, which will supplement Sportsnet’s Champions League coverage this year.

I’ll start with the Premier League. TSN and TSN2 will combine to show four matches most weekends, with an additional match on TSN.ca. The online streaming is free. Last season TSN only had one or two matches per weekend. TSN’s coverage kicks off Saturday morning at 9:30am Eastern with a preview show featuring Luke Wileman, Jason de Vos and Kristian Jack. Following it at 10am ET is Norwich City v. Everton. This weekend TSN also has a doubleheader Saturday morning and a match Monday afternoon. For these matches TSN will simulcast NBC’s broadcast. It features host Rebecca Lowe alongside analysts Robbie Earle and Robbie Mustoe. Until this season Lowe was a presenter for ESPN in Britain. Earle previously worked for ITV, while Mustoe worked at ESPN. Coverage kicks off at 8am ET on Sunday with Premier League Live, followed by Crystal Palace vs. Tottenham. Then at 11am it’s Chelsea vs. Hull City; NBC’s Arlo White and Lee Dixon will provide commentary for this match. On Monday TSN has Manchester City vs. Newcastle, beginning at 2:30pm ET with Premier League Live.

Sportsnet’s coverage begins with the first match of the season, Liverpool v. Stoke City at 7:30am ET. Sportsnet has a tripleheader on Saturday, also featuring Arsenal v. Aston Villa at 10am ET and Swansea City v. Manchester United at 12:30pm ET. Gerry Dobson and Craig Forrest return to Sportsnet’s studio show, along with newcomer Danny Dichio. Sportsnet will mostly show Saturday matches during the first six weeks of the seasons, with the exception of the Manchester Derby on September 22. Following Saturday coverage (at either noon or 2:30pm ET) Sportsnet will show Premier League Matchday, recapping the day’s matches and news.

Sportsnet World’s coverage of the Premier League is severely cut compared to last year. Only four Sunday matches in the first six weeks are exclusive to Sportsnet World this season. That compares to all 11 under the old contract. Sportsnet World will also show a Saturday 10am ET match every week, along with some Monday and midweek matches.

The Champions League playoff round starts on Tuesday with 20 teams fighting for the final 10 spots in the group stage. Sportsnet 360 will also Sportsnet to show up to four matches every Champions League matchday this season.  This won’t happen this week because the regional channels have a Jays game on Tuesday and World has a Premier League game on Wednesday, but it is an exciting possibility for the future.

As for daily studio programs. TSN2 will carry the new ESPN show ESPN FC, weekdays at 5:30pm ET. Sportsnet’s Soccer Central (no longer Fox Soccer News) will continue despite Fox cutting its ties. However the show is no 30 minutes long, instead of 60.

However, for those who want to see La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and Championship coverage on beIN Sports, not such great news for you. Writer John Molinaro reports that beIN is no closer to launching in Canada and they don’t plan to sub-license games until the channel does get approved and launch. So basically the same thing we’ve heard for the past year.

Enjoy the soccer everyone!

FIFA Confederations Cup on CBC / Sportsnet World

The 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup from Brazil kicks off tomorrow on CBC and Sportsnet World. The eight-team competition, featuring Brazil, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Nigeria, Spain, Tahiti and Uruguay is a precursor to next years FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Between the two networks, all games will be shown live culminating with the third place and championship game on June 30.

Veteran CBC sports broadcaster Scott Russell with host the coverage in-studio and will be joined by former Canadian women’s national team member Clare Rustad and former Canadian men’s national team member and Sportsnet host Craig Forrest to provide analysis. Brenda Irving will be on-site in Brazil providing reports.

CBC will screen five games of the group stage live, plus the third place and championship match. Sportsnet World will show live the non-CBC games, as well as encore screenings each night. Every game will also be available live online at cbcsports.ca. CBC will broadcast an hour-long documentary at 4:30pm ET before the final on Sunday, June 30 on the history of the Confederations Cup.

All matches will also be available on TLN Telelatino and TLN En Español, as well as in French on TVA Sports. Full schedule is below.

2013 UEFA EURO Under-21 Championship on TSN

The top eight European under-21 teams will compete in Israel beginning tomorrow in the 2013 edition of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship.  TSN and TSN2 will have have all 12 group stage games live, as well as the two semi-finals and the final on June 18.

The schedule and press release can be found below. One very interesting thing to note is that former The Score football host Kristian Jack has joined TSN for their coverage to provide in-depth analysis. Since Rogers took over The Score and ‘The Footy Show’ disappeared from the airwaves, KJ had all but vanished apart from his occasional blog post. With James Sharman joining Fox Soccer News/Soccer Central, I presumed KJ wouldn’t be far behind, but for whatever reason, that never materialized. A shame really, as in my opinion, Jack is the best football analysts on Canadian television.

Wednesday, June 5
Israel vs. Norway – 11:45 a.m. ET on TSN2
England vs. Italy – 2:15 p.m. ET on TSN

Thursday, June 6
Spain vs. Russia – 11:45 a.m. ET on TSN2
Netherlands vs. Germany – 2:15 p.m. ET on TSN

Saturday, June 8
England vs. Norway – 11:45 a.m. ET on TSN2
Italy vs. Israel – 2:15 p.m. ET on TSN

Sunday, June 9
Netherlands vs. Russia – 4 p.m. ET on TSN
Germany vs. Spain – 6 p.m. ET on TSN2

Tuesday, June 11
Israel vs. England – 11:45 a.m. ET on TSN
Norway vs. Italy – 11:45 a.m. ET on TSN2

Wednesday, June 12
Spain vs. Netherlands – 11:45 a.m. ET on TSN
Russia vs. Germany – 11:45 a.m. ET on TSN2

Saturday, June 15
Semifinal 1 – 11:15 a.m. ET on TSN2
Semifinal 2 – 2:15 p.m. ET on TSN2

Tuesday, June 18
Final – 11:45 a.m. ET on TSN