ESPN Inks Deal With Champion For MLS Broadcasts

Posted on December 10, 2018 by philspicks

Courtesy: ESPN

ESPN has added a famous new name to its Major League Soccer broadcast staff.

British broadcaster Jon Champion will be the new play-by-play voice for the network’s MLS coverage. Champion has become one of the most well-known and respected soccer anchors overseas thanks to his coverage of the English Premiere League and various other top global football events over the past 30 years.

Champion will take the reins of the network’s MLS coverage beginning with the 2019 season. He will be joined by top analyst Taylor Twellman to round out the network’s team.

Champion said in an interview that he is looking forward to taking the next step in his broadcasting career.

“I am thrilled to be joining ESPN on a full-time basis to cover MLS and the other soccer properties now in the company’s growing portfolio,” Champion said. “It’s a big adventure to move my family to the U.S., and a personal personal challenge after more than 30 years covering the sport in Europe. I’ve really enjoyed working on MLS on my frequent visits, and now I get the chance to call the matches on a weekly basis and to relate the whole story as the league enters an exciting phase of its development.”

He added, “I’m also looking forward to working with Taylor Twellman, who has carved out such a strong reputation as an analyst. Taylor and I have had great fun when we’ve worked together in the past, and it will be great to develop that rapport further.”

ESPN Senior Coordinating Producer Amy Rosenfeld shared her excitement about Champion’s addition to the network’s on-air roster.

“Jon is one of the most beloved voices in soccer, so we are thrilled that fans in the U.S. who have enjoyed his commentary during major global tournaments on ESPN will now have the opportunity to hear him weekly on Major League Soccer.”

Champion’s new contract marks his second run with ESPN. He previously worked for ESPN UK as the network’s lead football commentator, covering the English Premiere League, UEFA Europa League and the FA Cup Final from 2009-’13.

He joined ESPN in the United States in 2014 as play-by-play commentator for the World Cup in Brazil. the broadcast was Champion’s first international soccer event for an American audience. The result of that work led to work on the 2016 UEFA European Championship in France, UEFA’s World Cup Qualifying matches and the 2017 International Champions Cup (ICC), during which he served as the English-language voice of El Clasico Miami, the first-ever meeting in North America between Spain’s Barcelona FC and Real Madrid.

Champion also called the FIFA World Cup in South Africa while on loan from ESPN. He was joined by ESPN FC analyst and former Scotland National player Craig Burley for the tournament’s coverage. It was one of eight FIFA World Cup tournaments that Champion covered.

Champion started his broadcasting career with BBC Radio in the 1980s. He covered his first World Cup tournament at the age of 25. He joined BBC TV’s iconic program Match of the Day in 1995. In 2001, he moved to ITV, where he called games in the English Premiere League, UEFA Champions League and seven League Cup Finals.

More information on Champion’s addition to ESPN’s on-air roster is available online now along with all of the latest sports headlines at:

Website: http://www.espn.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ESPN

Twitter: http://twitter.com/espn

To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it. Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.

ESPN Announces Major League Soccer 2017 Season Broadcast Schedule

Posted on January 13, 2017 by philspicks

Courtesy: ESPN/ESPNFC

ESPN has announced its Major League Soccer 2017 broadcast schedule.

ESPN and its family of networks will broadcast 31 MLS games this season. The networks’ schedule opens Sunday, March 5 as the Orlando City SC takes on the New York City FC. Broadcast begins at 5 p.m. ET.

ESPN’s broadcast of the game marks the first time that Orlando’s soccer team will have played a full game in the new Orlando City Stadium. ESPN Deportes will simulcast the game, which will feature a number of the league’s top international stars. They include Brazil’s Kaka, Italy’s Antonio Nocerino (Orlando), Spain’s David Villa and Italy’s Andrea Pirlo (New York City).

Games will be broadcast each Sunday through June. On ESPN and its networks. Each game will be simulcast on ESPN Deportes. ESPN will present a special Friday broadcast of Real Salt Lake City FC vs. the Orlando City SC on June June 30 at 9:30 p.m. Games will vary between Friday, Saturday and Sunday through the remainder of the season. The full schedule for the ESPN networks’ coverage of the MLS 2017 season is noted below.

ESPN’s 2017 MLS Schedule

(Schedule Subject to Change)

Date	Time (ET)	Match	Networks
Sun, March 5	5 p.m.	Orlando City SC vs. New York City FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, March 12	5 p.m.	Minnesota United FC vs. Atlanta United FC	ESPN2, ESPN Deportes
Sun, April 2	9 p.m.	Portland Timbers vs. New England Revolution	ESPN2, ESPN Deportes
Sun, April 9	4 p.m.	Orlando City SC vs. New York Red Bulls	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Fri, April 14	7 p.m.	Philadelphia Union vs. New York City FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, April 23	4 p.m.	Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Seattle Sounders FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sat, May 6	4 p.m.	Seattle Sounders FC vs. Toronto FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, May 14	4 p.m.	Portland Timbers vs. Atlanta United FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, May 21	5 p.m.	Minnesota United FC vs. Los Angeles Galaxy	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, May 28	5 p.m.	Atlanta United FC vs. New York City FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sat, June 3	5 p.m.	Sporting Kansas City vs. Minnesota United FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sat, June 17	1 p.m.	New York City FC vs. Seattle Sounders FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, June 18	5 p.m.	Philadelphia Union vs. New York Red Bulls	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, June 25	4 p.m.	Portland Timbers vs. Seattle Sounders FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Fri, June 30	9:30 p.m.	Real Salt Lake City FC vs. Orlando City SC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sat, July 1	7 p.m.	Sporting Kansas City vs. Portland Timbers	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Fri, July 21	7 p.m.	Orlando City SC vs. Atlanta United FC	ESPN2, ESPN Deportes
Sat, July 22	4 p.m.	Minnesota United FC vs. New York Red Bulls	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sat, July 29	TBD	Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Seattle Sounders	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, July 30	2 p.m.	Toronto FC vs. New York City FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, Aug 6	4 p.m.	Portland Timbers vs. Los Angeles Galaxy	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, Aug 13	6 p.m.	Atlanta United FC vs. Minnesota United FC	ESPN2, ESPN Deportes
Sat, Aug 19	4 p.m.	Atlanta United FC vs. Los Angeles Galaxy	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Fri, Aug 25	7 p.m.	New York Red Bulls vs. New York City FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, Aug 27	4:30 p.m.	Montreal Impact vs. Toronto FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, Sep 10	1 p.m.	Columbus Crew SC vs. Sporting Kansas City	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, Sep 17	1 p.m.	New York Red Bulls vs. Philadelphia Union	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, Sept 24	1 p.m.	Sporting Kansas City vs. Los Angeles Galaxy	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, Oct 1	1 p.m.	Philadelphia Union vs. Seattle Sounders FC	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, Oct 15	3 p.m.	TBD – Week 33 Flexible Scheduling	ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Sun, Oct 22	4 p.m.	TBD – Decision Day	ESPN, ESPN Deportes

More information on the ESPN networks’ coverage of the MLS 2017 season is available online now along with all of the latest MLS headlines at:

Website: http://www.espnfc.us

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ESPNFC

Monster Energy Rock Allegiance Festival Returning For Its Second Year

Posted on May 9, 2016 by philspicks

Courtesy: Danny Wimmer Presents/Ashton-Magnuson Media

There’s big concert news coming out of Pennsylvania today.

The Monster Energy Rock Allegiance Festival is returning to Pennsylvania this summer. It will take place Saturday, September 17^th and Sunday, September 18^th at Talen Energy Stadium (formerly PPL Park), home of Major League Soccer’s Philadelphia Union, in Chester, PA, which is just outside of Philadelphia. It will feature a lineup of more than 35 bands. That lineup includes but is not limited to: Avenged Sevenfold, Alice In Chains, Slayer, The Offspring, Breaking Benjamin, Volbeat, Chevelle, The Cult, The Pretty Reckless, Pierce The Veil, Of Mice & Men, Ghost, Anthrax, Killswitch Engage, Chevy Metal, Baroness, Hellyeah, Sevendust, Motionless In White, Buckcherry, Trivium, Avatar, Max & Iggor Cavalera Return To Roots, Jim Breuer and the Loud & Rowdy, Sick Puppies, The Amity Affliction, letlive., Neck Deep, Skindred, KYNG, Young Guns, Crobot, Devour The Day, Twelve Foot Ninja, Dinosaur Pile Up, Death Angel and Hundredth.

A rolling discounted Early Bird on-sale for weekend General Admission tickets and VIP passes starts this Tuesday, May 10^th at 12pm EDT and runs through Friday, May 13^th at 10am EDT. Early Bird tickets and VIP passes will be available in a very limited quantity. The prices for each is noted below.

Early Bird #1: $79 GA Weekend Stands, $99 GA Weekend Floor, $219 VIP Weekend

Early Bird #2: $89 GA Weekend Stands, $109 GA Weekend Floor, $239 VIP Weekend

Early Bird #3: $99 GA Weekend Stands, $129 GA Weekend Floor, $259 VIP Weekend

Zippo 2-packs will also be available at a price of $550. They include 2-VIP weekend passes and 2 commemorative Zippos. Single-day admission and general weekend packages will go on full sale along with VIP packages beginning May 13^th at 10am EDT. Prices will increase in the weeks leading up to the festival. Current prices are listed below.

GA Weekend: $129 floor, $99 stands

GA 4-Packs: $308

VIP Weekend: $219

VIP 2-Packs: $550

Single Day GA (stands): $44.50

Single Day VIP: $119.50

VIP packages for the festival include: Stadium-level VIP main stage viewing, floor-level VIP viewing area for the west main stage, dedicated entrance lanes into the festival, VIP area with shade and picnic tables, VIP restrooms, special food and beverage offerings (for additional purchase), and a commemorative VIP laminate.

The music is just one part of the experience that audiences will be able to enjoy at this year’s festival. Along with lots of great music there will also be loads of great food and drink, too. There will loads of dishes offered by some of Philadelphia’s eateries in the Gourmet Man Food experience. There will also be plenty of brews offered by breweries from across America. The culinary lineup for the Gourmet Man Food Experience currently features: Braz-B-Q, Chickie & Pete’s, The Cow & The Curd, Dos Hermanos, Dump ’n’ Roll, M.A.T.T.’s Gourmet Sliders, Mama’s Meatballs, Seoulfull Philly, Sum Pig and The Tot Cart. The breweries that will be at the festival include: Evolution Craft Brewing Co (Salisbury, MD), Fordham & Dominion Brewing Company (Dover, DE), New Belgium Brewing (Fort Collins, CO), Starr Hill Brewery (Crozet, VA), Tröegs Independent Brewing (Hershey, PA) and Victory Brewing Company (Downington, PA).

Danny Wimmer, head of Danny Wimmer Presents, recently discussed the festival’s return with the media. He discussed not only the festival’s return but its expansion to two days this year and expectations in general for this year’s event. “When we came to Philadelphia last year, we knew there was a demand for this kind of festival in the market, but the response exceeded our expectations,” he said. Growing to two days in our second year was an obvious decision, and we’re looking forward to giving fans an even better experience in 2016.”

Geoff Gordon is President of Live Nation Philadelphia. He echoed Wimmer’s sentiments in his thoughts on the festival’s return. “Last year’s Monster Energy Rock Allegiance was a huge success on so many levels,” he said. “We were proud to bring this venue their first ever concert; a record-setting, sold out smash hit. The audience had such a great time enjoying a unique experience of music and lifestyle — we knew in 2016 we could turn it up a notch!”

The Monster Energy Rock Allegiance Festival is presented by Danny Wimmer Presents, Live Nation, and Spectra at Talen Energy Stadium. It is sponsored by: Jack Daniel’s, Zippo Encore, The Music Experience, Take Me Home, and Fxck Cancer/Dyin2Live, with more to be announced. More information on the 2016 Monster Energy Rock Allegiance Festival is available online now at:

Website: http://www.RockAllegiance.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/rockallegiance

Twitter: http://twitter.com/rockallegiance

More information on all of the latest events at Talen Energy Stadium is available online now at:

Website: http://www.philadelphiaunion.com/stadium

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TalenEnergyStadium

Twitter: http://twitter.com/talenenergystdm

Audiences can also get advance notice about all of the latest events at Talen Energy Stadium by joining the free Talen Energy Stadium CyberClub here.

To keep up with all of the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it. Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.

Soccer Fans Getting More Coverage From ESPN Beginning This Summer

Posted on May 14, 2013 by philspicks

Courtesy: ESPN/ESPNFC

ESPN is giving soccer fans an early Christmas gift this Summer. What started mainly on the ESPNFC.com website has evolved into the first ever full length studio show dedicated to coverage of all things soccer. ESPN FC on TV will air on ESPN daily on ESPN beginning Sunday, August 11^th. The announcement was made today at the company’s Upfront presentation in New York City. The new show will take the place of ESPN FC Press Pass, which currently airs on ESPNEWS in the United States.

The new program will be more than just a studio based show. It will also incorporate the use of ESPNFC.com into the show via a variety of outlets including social media and ESPN’s industry-leading Stats & Information Group’s data visualization analysis, just to name a couple. Digital versions of the show will be available online at http://www.ESPNFC.com.

Scott Guglielmino spoke on the motivation to expand ESPN’s coverage of professional soccer, noting the increased attention that it is now getting around the world. “Soccer’s popularity is at an all-time high in the United States as fans are now more familiar with the world’s top players, marquee clubs and national teams. ESPN FC on TV continues our leadership role in coverage of the sport across all media,” he said. “ESPN FC will inform, entertain and provide hard-hitting insight on the global sport of soccer,” It will become ESPN’s signature program for soccer, bringing tremendous value to the company, our affiliates and the ad sales community looking to reach core and casual soccer fans in the United States.”

Sunday editions of ESPN FC on TV will offer full wrap-ups of each week’s biggest games and looks forward to the coming week, too. Weekday editions of the show will run for half an hour each day. Fans can expect from ESPN FC on TV all the latest news and rumors from around the world of professional soccer. Reporters, columnist, and bloggers from around the world will have all the latest from the Barclay’s Premiere League, UEFA Champion’s League, Spain’s La Liga, Major League Soccer, the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team, and Mexican National Team. It will also include interviews with the biggest names from around the professional soccer world, and previews of the biggest games from the FIFA World Cup qualifying matches, Manchester Derby, and even more.

To keep up with the latest soccer news from ESPN online, fans can “Like” the ESPN FC Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/ESPNFC and check in daily at the ESPN FC website, http://www.espnfc.com.

ESPN Releases 2013 MLS Broadcast Schedule, Details

Posted on February 22, 2013 by philspicks

Courtesy: ESPN

Major League Soccer and ESPN are set to “kick” off their 18^th season together. The league’s 18^th season on the ESPN family of networks is set to begin Sunday, March 3^rd. The new season’s premiere matchup pits the Portland Timbers against the New York Red Bulls from JELD-WEN Field in Portland, Oregon. It will air live on ESPN2, ESPN 3D, and ESPN Deportes at 7:30pm EST. The inter-conference competition will be the first of 20 regular season matches to be broadcast. 18 of those matches will be Sunday games, making it MLS’ most consistent broadcasting schedule on ESPN. All 19 regular season matches will be broadcast in HD. Twelve of those matches will air on ESPN2. Seven will run on ESPN. One extra match that is currently TBD will also run on ESPN2.

All matches broadcast on the ESPN family of networks will also be simulcast live on ESPN Deportes Radio. Eight of the season’s matches will be broadcast on ESPN 3D, the world’s very first 24/7 all-sports 3D network. Seven of those eight will be broadcast live. It marks the first time that MLS soccer matches will be shown in 3D. All regular season matches will also be available to fans online courtesy of WatchESPN.

Adrian Healey will offer play-by-play commentary. Healey will be joined by analysts Taylor Twellman and Alexi Lalas in studio. Reporter Monica Gonzales will handle English-language commentaries. Richard Mendez and former New York/New Jersey (New York Red Bulls) striker Giovanni Savarese both return to call the matches in Spanish for ESPN Deportes. Kenneth Garay, Elmer Polanco, and Diego Cora will be in the booth for ESPN Deportes Radio.

MLS fans have a lot to look forward to this season. Along with expanded coverage on television and online, ESPN will broadcast the only regular-season meeting of the New York Red Bulls and Los Angeles Galaxy. That matchup is scheduled for Sunday, May 19^th. It will broadcast live from the Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey. It’s just one of many big matches expected for this season. To get a full schedule of games, just go online to http://espnfc.com/fixtures/_/league/usa.1/major-league-soccer?cc=5901.

philspicks

All the latest reviews and news in entertainment

Tag Archives: Major League Soccer