lefty
12-16-2009, 01:30 PM
Web sight
England fans were left in horror in 2009 when their meaningless qualifier against Ukraine was shown exclusively on the internet for the very first time. Some may claim that this was a watershed moment for live football, when in truth it was purely because no broadcaster in the UK was prepared to pay the fee being demanded to show the game.
While some heralded this as a sign of things to come, it is very likely that an internet broadcast will only ever be a last resort once other cash streams have been exhausted. Honestly, who on earth wants to watch a match huddled around a laptop with a small screen, praying that there's no ill-timed buffering or picture break-up? I best try refreshing that browser.
Although paying for football is now second nature - though that is through a monthly subscription - the pay-per-view model never took hold in the United Kingdom. It will be a long time before people will do so on the internet, in large numbers at least.
iPods for penalties :lmao
Practicing penalties and generally doing your homework is hardly anything new, teams have done it for many, many years. We thought we'd seen it all when everyone's loveable rogue, Jens Lehmann, kept notes on penalty takers on little scraps of paper, placed in his sock for easy reference. That was at the 2006 World Cup when the game between Germany and Argentina went to penalties. Lehmann went the right way for every spot-kick, saving from Roberto Ayala and Esteban Cambiasso as Germany went through.
But technology took a new turn in 2009 when Manchester United goalkeeper Ben Foster enlisted the help of an iPod in the Carling Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur.
After the game went to penalties, Foster spent some time viewing Spurs players taking them on an iPod to be better prepared for the ensuing shootout. Jamie O'Hara stepped up to take the first penalty and Foster went the right way to make the save, and United went on to lift the trophy.
England fans were left in horror in 2009 when their meaningless qualifier against Ukraine was shown exclusively on the internet for the very first time. Some may claim that this was a watershed moment for live football, when in truth it was purely because no broadcaster in the UK was prepared to pay the fee being demanded to show the game.
While some heralded this as a sign of things to come, it is very likely that an internet broadcast will only ever be a last resort once other cash streams have been exhausted. Honestly, who on earth wants to watch a match huddled around a laptop with a small screen, praying that there's no ill-timed buffering or picture break-up? I best try refreshing that browser.
Although paying for football is now second nature - though that is through a monthly subscription - the pay-per-view model never took hold in the United Kingdom. It will be a long time before people will do so on the internet, in large numbers at least.
iPods for penalties :lmao
Practicing penalties and generally doing your homework is hardly anything new, teams have done it for many, many years. We thought we'd seen it all when everyone's loveable rogue, Jens Lehmann, kept notes on penalty takers on little scraps of paper, placed in his sock for easy reference. That was at the 2006 World Cup when the game between Germany and Argentina went to penalties. Lehmann went the right way for every spot-kick, saving from Roberto Ayala and Esteban Cambiasso as Germany went through.
But technology took a new turn in 2009 when Manchester United goalkeeper Ben Foster enlisted the help of an iPod in the Carling Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur.
After the game went to penalties, Foster spent some time viewing Spurs players taking them on an iPod to be better prepared for the ensuing shootout. Jamie O'Hara stepped up to take the first penalty and Foster went the right way to make the save, and United went on to lift the trophy.