In addition to English, ESPN will be airing the World Cup in five languages. Back in November, ESPN announced that it would air games in Portuguese on ESPN Deportes. Today, ESPN announces that it will show games in four additional languages by pressing a button on your remote control. Take a look at the press release.
AT&T U-Verse, Cox and DirecTV to Offer ESPN’s Coverage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa in Multiple LanguagesESPN Offers Tournament to Affiliates in Arabic, German, Japanese and KoreanLOS ANGELES, CA – As part of ESPN’s multi-language coverage for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa in the U.S., ESPN has introduced a unique, collaborative program that will allow its affiliates to offer select matches from South Africa 2010 in other languages in the United States. This will mark the first time in its FIFA World Cup history, ESPN, in collaboration with affiliates, will offer live matches of the quadrennial tournament in languages other than English. The languages – Arabic, German, Japanese and Korean – can be accessed by a subscriber by making a simple adjustment directly on their set top box, by selecting the appropriate option in their on screen guide, or online via ESPN3.com.In November 2009, ESPN announced that ESPN Deportes, the all-sports Spanish-language network, and ESPN3.com will provide Portuguese-language telecasts of 2010 FIFA World Cup, as part of its multi-language rights (except Spanish) in the U.S. for FIFA events through 2014.“We are always looking for new ways to serve our fans and the World Cup presented the perfect opportunity,” said David Preschlack, executive vice president, affiliate sales and marketing, Disney & ESPN Networks Group. “Our team has coordinated a lot of moving pieces to make this happen and we think the end result will help our affiliates serve their increasingly diverse constituents.”Schedules of matches available in each language will be announced closer to the beginning of World Cup on June 11. Instructions for accessing the various languages will vary depending upon provider.ESPN Inc.’s 2010 FIFA World Cup Coverage in the United States
South Africa 2010 will be ESPN’s seventh FIFA World Cup and coverage of the event promises to be the most comprehensive in company history. ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC will air all 64 matches live and in high definition. ESPN3.com, ESPN’s signature broadband network available in more than 50 million homes, will feature live English-language simulcasts of matches on ESPN and ESPN2. ESPN Mobile TV will show all matches. ESPN Deportes, the Spanish-language all sports network, will air more than 50 matches in Portuguese live in the U.S., and ESPN Radio will broadcast all 64 matches.Additionally, ESPN will present 2010 FIFA World Cup <http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/index.html> television studio programming from site in South Africa, offering U.S. sports fans the most comprehensive news and information coverage throughout the month-long soccer showcase. Studio coverage of the quadrennial global event will include SportsCenter segments, a nightly World Cup Live program, and prematch, halftime and postmatch shows, with additional studio programming and World Cup-branded segments, totaling more than 65 hours of coverage, originating from two sets in and around Johannesburg.ESPN Coverage of Past FIFA World Cup Events:
- Germany 2006 – All 64 matches live and in high definition
- Korea/Japan 2002 – 58 ESPN and ESPN2 matches live (6 tape-delayed broadcasts on ABC)
- France 1998 – All 64 matches live on ESPN (27), ESPN2 (23) and ABC Sports (14)
- USA 1994 – All 52 matches – ESPN (41) and ABC (11)
- Mexico 1986 – 15 matches on ESPN (U.S. cable television rights)
- Spain 1982 – 7 matches on ESPN
More releases coming throughout the night.
