EPL season approacheth; joyness fills my heart

Aug 23, 2009, 6:05 PM UTC

EPL

My awareness of the bigger soccer world -- that is, the soccer world beyond the daily pickup games at the nearby, neighborhood field --began with a brilliant little Public Television offer, All-Star Soccer. If you're a Generation Xer with a soft spot for soccer, you just got a big smile on your face.

Those one-hour, edited matches from England back in the daywere the highlight of my week. The games were a God-send. And even then, as a kid, I saw the kitschy humor in watching players walk off the field at halftime and, in an instant, stroll right back on. The whole program was just an hour, after all, and there was no reason to jack around with halftime silliness.

Anyway, that was it in terms of seeing the world's game on TV. "You will get one hour a week -- and you will like it!"

But the blessed delight of an improved media world means you can see more soccer than truly possible for anyone with a job -- or anyone looking for one. And that includes the venerable English Premier League.

(Before anyone grenades this post with misspelled bluster over how Serie A or La Liga or whatever is better, well, those leagues are wonderful, and I catch matches when I can. I just happen to have picked EPL long ago as my foreign league of choice. I can’t watch ‘em all.)

Funny thing about this year is the TV weirdness bracketing tomorrow’s kickoff. Well, it’s weird in our part of the world. I assume everyone in England knows where to find the matches on TV.

But that’s not the case here. The well-heeled teams of the EPL start kicking shins and taking names at 7:45 a.m. ET on Saturday, and the game might or might not be on TV.

There’s something odd afoot. Listings are vague or in flux. No one at ESPN is talking about it. I can only guess it’s all about rights and legalese and / or negotiations in a big game of chicken between ESPN and FSC.

Even with good contacts at Soccer United Marketing and elsewhere in the sports TV world (and even though I write for ESPN Soccernet) I can’t get any traction on sorting this one out. I fear Walter Cronkite will appear in a dream tonight, admonishing my poor performance on fleshing out this vital matter.

On the other hand, since the noble force of American journalism has recently moved on to the big pitch in the sky, well, maybe if he does appear in a dream he can tell me what the eff is going on. Until that happens, I guess I’ll just do like everyone else eager to get on with EPL matters: wake up early on Saturday, turn on the TV and hope to all hell that a game is on.

Who’s gonna win the EPL this year. Bobby McMahon, a fellow who’s opinions I truly respect, calls it for Arsenal -- and acknowledges how many followers think he’s a couple of songs short of a full concert, if you know what I mean.

England’s Guardian says Man U. will rise above the rest.

The guys who may know best -- just, uh, don’t ask how they know -- say it’s gonna be Chelsea.

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