Join me LIVE at 2 PM this afternoon for a live blog of the four Premier League matches being played today, including a possible Fernando Torres Chelsea debut. Also a short discussion of yesterday’s transfer sagas beforehand to whet the appetite. See you then!

Arsenal v Everton (FSC); 2:30 PM ET
Sunderland v Chelsea (FS+); 2:40 PM ET
Manchester Utd v Aston Villa (ESPN2); 2:55 PM ET
West Brom v Wigan Athletic (foxsoccer.tv); 2:55 PM ET

Watching Aston Villa versus Everton today on Fox Soccer Channel, it’s such a troubling admission that I have a problem. I love football. I can’t get enough of it. I sit at work on a Monday afternoon and wonder about the Man City result. On a Thursday morning, instead of paying attention to quality control on the files in front of me, I’m imagining the possible opponents of my beloved Portsmouth in the next round of the Carling Cup. And my weekends are spent in England, Germany, Spain, Italy and maybe even Brazil with thousands of rabid fans, cheering the highs and bemoaning the lows through my television.

But I have to do it with frustration, as my TV is often turned to Fox Soccer Channel, the ex-girlfriend whose number I can’t throw away. I love FSC for one reason – they put on the beautiful game and little else, outside of a guaranteed Proactiv commercial during every break. The feed is of poor quality, as volume levels randomly go up and down. The picture goes choppy or freezes, then returns a few seconds later to taunt me, knowing I’m no longer looking at a live shot of the action.

The picture quality is, quite plainly, atrocious for any sport. After a summer of being treated to HD on the ABC / ESPN family of networks for the World Cup, I endure something that shouldn’t even be called any level of “definition.” It only reminds me of the days when my cable box had a dial on it, and the channel numbers stopped at 36.

I know that Fox is not entirely responsible for Verizon’s FiOS not offering the channel in HD, but can’t they carry some of the blame? I get TLC and ABC Family in HD – why do I need to see reenactments of women who didn’t know they were pregnant in hi-def? Is HD really going to make Sixteen Candles a visual masterpiece? I would like Fox to, quite simply, try harder to get FSC HD on all available providers. No excuses. It’s the beautiful game. Watching football on FSC is essentially what it would be like if the producers of Mad Men had Christina Hendricks wear a beekeeper’s suit every week.

Much has already been said about FSC’s other programming choices, so I won’t rehash all of it. However, I can confirm that I am NOT interested in what Susan Sarandon has to say on Soccer Talk Live tomorrow. Really? Susan Sarandon? I think she’s a very talented actress, but in the first few shows of a supposedly “cutting-edge” football program, this is who they’re booking? Was Dina Lohan not available? Or can we perhaps expect Flavor Flav on an upcoming episode?

I love the sport of football. Nothing else comes close for me. But Fox Soccer Channel certainly presents obstacles in my love affair with the game. Like that ex-girlfriend of mine, there’s a seemingly endless list of bad qualities. However, all the negatives are put up against the one thing  that’s done so well. FSC shows football matches. A lot of them. So, like the ex’s phone number, until a better option comes along or it changes dramatically for the better, I’ll hang on to FSC.

But they should be worried about how I’ll feel tomorrow.

Within the last 12 months, you’ve done a lot to enhance your product and the growth of the game. The launch of the HD channel and Fox Soccer Plus, while not by any means perfect, have been a major plus. The announcement of the new Fox Soccer Tonight program is another good step for the network. But after the addition of ESPN to the EPL fray last season, it has highlighted many areas you could improve on in your coverage. Here are a few suggestions for the coming season:

Start your match telecasts at the correct time.

I’ll have to say, it impressed me that from the start of ESPN’s PL coverage, they would cut into whatever program was running at 2:55 PM to have ample time to show the lineups and a bit of the buildup for a 3 PM kickoff. In England (and Europe), a 3 PM kickoff means that at precisely 3 PM, the match kicks off! So why then do your 10 AM ET telecasts start exactly at 10 AM, leaving no time for any buildup at all? Invariably, you will squeeze in the lineups and either go to commercial or to the kickoff, meaning we’re left watching the match on a two to four minute delay. Yes, 2-4 minutes isn’t a big deal, but you’re a soccer channel! European soccer is the main reason we tune in. Please, Fox: start your coverage a bit early. I shouldn’t be able to find an illegal stream of the match online that is minutes ahead of what’s on my TV.

“You are watching FSC, in HD”

Luckily, I’ve been able to largely avoid FSC during the summer, and therefore haven’t had to hear much of this abomination of an advertisement. But when I hear it for the 20th time by next week and involuntarily throw my remote through my LCD out of anger, should I send the bill to you or to Comcast?

Warren Barton.

Look, I’m sure he’s a nice guy. But two years on, he’s still a statue on television. Every time he looks into the camera, I feel like he’s staring daggers right through me. Maybe spring for some acting classes for him; give him a beer before he goes on, something. Although I do have fun with a drinking game I came up with for every time he says “as well” in his analysis (he once said it 19 times during just the two starting lineups).

Pop-Up Ads

I don’t entirely blame you on this one. I’m sure making a sport with few commercials survive on a channel with a limited budget isn’t possible without them. But I think I speak for everyone when I say that they’re extremely distracting, especially when they pop up during play. At least wait for the stoppages (injury, goal kick, free kick, whatever) to display them. And please remove that “HD” tag from the corner of the screen. It’s like you’re mocking us.

Sincerely (I swear),
Phil

What other suggestions would you have to improve FSC and FS+ for the future?

Derek Rae, one of the most talented US-based soccer commentators, will call his last game for ESPN US next week before he heads to the United Kingdom to work for ESPN UK.

Rae will be the ESPN UK’s main commentator for the Scottish Premier League, where ESPN UK will air 30 SPL games from the 2010-11 season, beginning on August 15 for Europa League qualifiers Motherwell against Hibernian. He’ll also commentate Europa League games as well as some English football games (mostly FA Cup) and the other European leagues that ESPN UK covers such as Serie A, Bundesliga and Eredivisie. In addition to ESPN UK, you may see Rae on ESPN’s Press Pass, which is shown around the world on ESPN affiliates. And there’s always the chance that you may hear him on a world feed again, or see him reporting for ESPN.

His last game as a commentator for ESPN US will be next week’s friendly between Manchester City and Club America.

Born and bred in the Scottish city of Aberdeen, Rae joined ESPN in 1994, and is best known for his work as the lead English language play-by-play commentator for the UEFA Champions League.  In June 2008, he served as a play-by-play commentator for ESPN’s critically acclaimed coverage of the UEFA European Football Championship 2008 (Euro 08). And during June and July of this year, Rae served as play-by-play commentator for ESPN and ABC during the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Rae’s professional broadcasting experience dates back to 1986, when he made his debut with BBC Scotland, while still a student at Aberdeen University.  The following year he was named “Sony British Sports Broadcaster of the Year” for his work as a soccer commentator.  While with BBC Scotland, Rae was assigned to matches in 19 different countries, and was behind the microphone at the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy. After leaving the BBC in 1991, Rae moved to Boston, MA, initially to serve as a Venue Press Officer for the World Cup USA 1994 Organizing Committee.

Rae, for many soccer fans in the United States, is synonymous with being the “voice of the Champions League.” His caliber of commentating was, by far, the best in the United States. And his level of research and pronunciations were exemplary. Rae raised the bar with his commentary style and will forever be fondly remembered in the hearts and minds of soccer fans who were witness to his professionalism and pure class.

The big question for soccer fans in the United States is where will ESPN go from here? Will Adrian Healey step into Derek Rae’s shoes to fill the gaping void? Or will ESPN hire additional talent to help balance the load of commentating Major League Soccer games and upcoming internationals? We’ll have to wait and see, but in the meantime, let’s wish Derek Rae the best of luck.

The one thing that the preseason friendlies have revealed to me thus far is the enormous drop off in talent between the commentary teams that we were spoilt with during the World Cup to the B-level of talent we witnessed during the Man United vs Celtic (Glenn Davis and Kyle Martino) and San Jose Earthquakes vs Tottenham Hotspur (Rob Stone and Taylor Twellman) games. It almost feels like separation anxiety now that Ian Darke, Roberto Martinez and others have left us.

In fairness to ESPN, their usual team of US-based A-level commentators must be taking a well-deserved vacation after working the 31-day World Cup tournament. But still, the lack of decent commentary by the remaining commentators available is alarming. And it’s something that I didn’t pay particular attention to until reality struck that Darke, Tyler, Martinez and company are now back in the UK.

Here are just a few examples of how poor ESPN’s commentary was during the Earthquakes against Spurs game Saturday:

1. Stone and Twellman raved about Robbie Keane and described how he is currently “in his prime” and would be a perfect designated player signing for MLS especially for a team such as New England Revolution. While I don’t disagree that Keane would be a welcome addition to MLS, to describe Keane as being in the prime of his career is absurd. He’s 30 years old. He was on loan to Celtic last season because he couldn’t get a regular starting place ahead of Peter Crouch, Jermain Defoe and Roman Pavlyuchenko. Robbie Keane’s prime of his career has long passed. You could argue that his best year was his 2006-2007 season at Tottenham when he scored 22 goals in 44 appearances. That was 3-4 years ago.
2. Here’s an actual transcript of how Stone described one incident in the game yesterday: “Cornell Glen gets his man down, fires, and Cudicini serves up no rebound.” Huh? Cringe.
3. The pronunciation of some of the players names were butchered. For example, the commentators had a particularly difficult time pronouncing the names of Luka Modric and Niko Kranjcar.
4. Twellman was raving about Gareth Bale. I admire his skills too and find him to be one of the most exciting players in the Premier League. But during the game when Twellman described how well left back Bale was playing, he made a comment that wouldn’t England love to have someone of his caliber in that position? Problem is that England has Ashley Cole, one of the best left backs in the world.
5. Last but not least, most American commentators need to put the statistics sheet away and concentrate on the game itself. Watching the San Jose against Tottenham game, it often felt like Stone and Twellman were treating the 90 minutes like a talk show instead of focusing on the game itself. When commentators read statistic after statistic, it makes the listener feel as if the commentators are overcompensating for their inadequacies. It’s also frustrating because it takes us away from the game itself. All we want to do is hear about the match and what they’re seeing on the pitch. Not what happened off it in the past.

Many of the criticisms of Stone and Twellman can be leveled against most B-level soccer commentators in the United States. Twellman, to be fair, was in the color commentator seat for the first time ever for ESPN, so it’ll take time for him to improve. But based on first impressions, it was a terrible performance. Stone, meanwhile, is a much better presenter than commentator, so he was definitely out of his element this past weekend.

But whether it’s the team of Stone-Twellman or other commentators, the fact of the matter is that there’s huge room for improvement in the level of commentating of soccer games in the United States. But the reality is that there are few decent role models in the States. Phil Schoen of GolTV is the best one. JP Dellacamera, while not perfect, has the experience. John Harkes, despite the criticism, is improving and we saw that improvement as the World Cup evolved this summer. Adrian Healey and Robbie Mustoe are getting better and continue to hone their craft, but despite living in the States for several years, they’re technically English commentators, not American. Kyle Martino is likable but needs more experience.

The reality is that there aren’t a whole lot of decent soccer commentators or analysts in the United States, hence the reason ESPN hired most of its talent from Europe this summer. However, US sports networks have an opportunity to groom talent. Consider how many hours of games are available for them to work on throughout a typical season even if the games themselves are using the international feed. There are still plenty of time before, at half-time and after games to hone their craft.

The other option is for ESPN and other broadcasters to hire foreign talent on a permanent deal. While Martin Tyler, Ian Darke and company are well paid for their services in the United Kingdom, there still may be room for other English commentators to ply their craft in the States on a permanent deal. What about bringing over a Steve Banyard or Stewart Robson on a 12-month contract? Someone with quality who can help mentor some of the less experienced U.S. commentators and analysts? It’s definitely worth a consideration.

According to sources, ESPN and Fox Sports International are currently in negotiations for FSI to sublicense some of the Barclays Premier League TV rights in the U.S. through 2013 to ESPN.

However, a deal has not yet been signed. And soccer fans in the United States will have to wait until an agreement is reached before they know which games will be televised on which TV networks.

Soccer fans in the United States are used to waiting. While there are still 25 days to go until the 2010-11 Premier League season begins, many soccer fans will remember the last minute deal that was made by Fox and ESPN the night before the 2009-10 season kicked off so that ESPN2 could show the season opener between Chelsea and Hull City.

According to sources, it is understood that ESPN is looking for expanded rights in the U.S. that will allow the company to feature the matches on more platforms than in its previous 2009-2010 season agreement. That agreement only allowed ESPN to televise the matches on ESPN2. For the 2010-13 seasons, it’s likely that the games will also be available on ESPN3.com in addition to ESPN2.

The sources added that the time slot ESPN and FSI are negotiating is the early Saturday morning kick-off (and 10am, when there are no 7:45am matches). Some midweek matches may also be included.

The season opener for the 2010-11 Premier League season is Tottenham Hotspur against Manchester City on Saturday, August 14th at 7:45am. While a deal between ESPN and Fox has not yet been finalized, here is the tentative Premier League TV schedule for viewers in the United States.

The 2010 World Cup Final set a new record for the most watched soccer game in U.S. history Sunday when 24.3 million people watched the Spain versus Netherlands game on ABC and Univision, according to Nielsen.

Univision drew 8.821 million viewers, while ABC drew 15.45 million viewers according to Nielsen fast-nationals.

The 2010 World Cup set another record in the United States by being the most-viewed World Cup ever on English-language TV. The 64-match World Cup averaged a 2.1 U.S. rating and 3.261 million viewers on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC, up 31% in ratings and 41% in viewership from 2006 (1.6, 2.316 mil). Average viewing numbers for Univision are not yet available, but in comparison to viewing audiences for other sports, ESPN averaged 4.596 million viewers for the 2010 NBA Playoffs (ABC averaged 10.970 million for its 16-game coverage), and 4.311 million for its coverage of 2009-10 college football bowl games (ABC averaged 22.179 million for its three games).

“The 2010 FIFA World Cup was an overwhelming success for ESPN,” said John Skipper, ESPN executive vice president, content. “We experienced record viewership across multiple platforms, including television, broadband, online and ESPN Audio, and it was evident from the overwhelmingly positive reaction just how much fans were drawn to the spectacle of this global sports event. We are already looking ahead with great anticipation to the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.”

For Univision, this marks the most-viewed World Cup Final ever on the network and the second-most viewed World Cup match – behind Mexico/Argentina on June 27 (9.405 mil). Overall, the World Cup Final match ranks as the third-most viewed for any television program in Univision history.

UPDATE: Univision averaged 2.374 million viewers for coverage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, up 15% from 2006 and the highest average ever for the World Cup on the network.

How does the TV viewing audience for the 2010 World Cup Final compare to previous records, other countries and other sports? Let’s put this into perspective:

• The previous record in the United States for the most watched soccer game on television was the 19.4 million viewers who watched the U.S. versus Ghana on the same networks earlier during the 2010 World Cup, followed by the 1994 World Cup Final (staged in the United States), which drew 18.1 million viewers on ABC and Univision. The final of the Women’s World Cup in 1999 between the United States and China drew 18 million on ABC.
• The 24.3 million viewers marks the fourth-largest audience for any sporting event in 2010 (excludes NFL and primetime Olympic telecasts). Only the USA/Canada Olympic Hockey Gold Medal Game (27.600 mil), Game 7 of the Celtics/Lakers NBA Finals (28.203 mil) and the BCS National Championship Game (30.776 mil) drew more viewers.
• The combined audience drew more viewers than every single Major League Baseball game since 2004 and every single college basketball game since 1999.
• In the United Kingdom, an average of 18.4 million viewers watched the 2010 World Cup Final on BBC and ITV combined.
• Spain registered its highest ever TV audience as 15.6 million — an 85.9% audience share.
• In Holland 8.5 million viewers — a 90.6% share — watched the game.
• According to FIFA, a worldwide television audience of more than 700 million people watched the final.

Without a doubt, the 2010 World Cup Final is a landmark moment in the history of soccer in the United States. If anyone doubted whether soccer was growing in popularity in this country, then these are the numbers to prove them wrong.

If the United States had progressed farther in the tournament, one can only imagine how much higher the TV viewing audience would have been. Still, these are incredible numbers and full credit needs to go to ESPN, ABC, Univision and you, the soccer fans, for making the 2010 World Cup the most successful soccer tournament in US history.

When Martin Tyler and co-commentator Efan Ekoku did their preparation work for the 2010 World Cup, one thing they definitely didn’t study was the national anthem of Spain. Not that we expect them to, but when Efan Ekoku was sharing his analysis during Wednesday’s World Cup semi-final between Germany and Spain, he committed a minor flub.

In the 24th minute of the game, Ekoku shared the interesting observation that none of the Spanish players sung the national anthem during the quarter-final match against Paraguay. Except, for the fact that the Spanish national anthem is one of the few in the world that has no lyrics!

Even though “La marcha real” (“The Royal March”) has no lyrics, words have been written for it in the past, but the national anthem has been played without lyrics since 1978 when the lyrics that had been approved by General Franco were abandoned.

Here the transcript of the commentary by Martin Tyler and Efan Ekoku, which shows that Tyler didn’t realize the national anthem contained no words either.

Martin Tyler (MT): “There is one other aspect, and this group [of Spanish players] certainly dispelled it, they have had divisions in the camp… Spain teams in the past through the political divisions in the country. Still there in the football rivalry between Barcelona and Real Madrid. But at least there, between the players, they’ve realized they’ve got to get on it together.”

Efan Ekoku (EE): “Certainly not on the surface, but an interesting note I sort of recognized the other day, in the quarter-finals I think it was, was that none of the players sung the national anthem.”

MT: “But they wouldn’t be alone in that, because they might have more reason…”

EE: “…not to, yeah…”

MT: “That’s a good point, Efan. Well made.”

In fairness to Ekoku and Tyler, it’s impossible to know everything about the 32 participating teams in the country. Ekoku made a mistake and presumed that the Spaniards neglected to sing the national anthem for other reasons other than the fact that the song has no words. It’s not the end of the world, but it’s still an embarrassing flub especially if you’re a Spain supporter.

Perfection is almost impossible to attain, but given ESPN’s performance during the 2010 World Cup, they’ve come as close as any TV network can get. Commentators, production value, some of the best analysts and beautiful HD broadcasts, it’s hard to imagine any network being able to outdo the level of quality that ESPN has provided viewers in the United States.

Not surprisingly, the TV ratings on ESPN have broken a multitude of records. And World Cup viewership is up 50 percent from the 2006 World Cup with an average of 2.94 million viewers per game.

And now, gulp, there is talk about ESPN considering the prospect of creating a dedicated 24/7 soccer network. Cue executives at Fox Soccer Channel perspiring at the thought of ESPN competing with them head-to-head.

For now, all we have is a quote from ESPN President George Bodenheimer who, when asked whether ESPN was considering a 24/7 soccer network, said Wednesday

“It’s not something we’re actively looking at right now, but I wouldn’t rule anything out given that the company likes to continue to grow.”

While the World Cup is a one-of-a-kind tournament that cannot be surpassed in terms of the scale of the event globally, the chemistry of what makes the World Cup so special is available each weekend during a typical club season. Take a weekend where you have a big clash in the Premier League followed by a top-of-the-table battle in La Liga. You’re likely to see several of the same top World Cup stars playing against each other in games that are sometimes more open and entertaining than World Cup games. Plus the stadiums are likely to be filled with as much passion and noise than you’d see in South Africa. Combine that with superb coverage, production value and analysis like we’ve seen from ESPN during the World Cup and you have the recipe for continued high TV ratings. Best of all, you can carry that across ten months instead of just one for the World Cup. Sure, the ratings won’t be as high as Copa Mundial, but over the course of the season, imagine how attractive the coverage would be for soccer viewers and advertisers alike.

The key for continued high ratings in America is one important ingredient: American soccer players competing at the highest level in Europe or abroad. If soccer fans in the United States can see stars such as Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, Tim Howard and others playing against the best of the best, it gives ESPN renewed hope that TV ratings will remain high as Americans get behind their players. And cheer them on even if the two teams playing seem as remote and foreign as they possibly can be.

For now, Bodenheimer’s words are a tease for soccer fans. But for the head of ESPN to even consider the possibility shows you how far soccer has risen in such a short amount of time, how well ESPN has done and how soccer fans have gravitated to this tournament. The sky is the limit for ESPN, which is wonderful news for soccer fans (and ESPN). But it also means that it’ll force Fox Soccer Channel to raise its game in order to compete. Whether they will or not is not known at this time, but it’ll be interesting to watch from the touchline.

After Sunday’s World Cup Final, many soccer fans will be jonesing for more games to watch before the Premier League season kicks off again on August 14. But thankfully, there are quite a few summer preseason friendlies featuring European teams that you’ll be able to watch on US television.

Here’s the schedule of games thus far (all times Eastern):

• Friday, July 16: Celtic v Man United, ESPN2, 7pm
• Saturday, July 17: San Jose Earthquakes v Tottenham Hotspur, ESPN, 4pm
• Wednesday, July 21: Celtic v Sporting, Fox Soccer Channel and FoxSoccer.tv, 8pm
• Wednesday, July 21: Philadelphia Union v Man United, ESPN2 & ESPN3.com, 7:30pm
• Thursday, July 22: NY Red Bulls v Spurs, New York Football Challenge Tournament, Fox Soccer Channel and FoxSoccer.tv, 8.30pm
• Friday, July 23: Man City v Sporting Lisbon, Fox Soccer Channel and FoxSoccer.tv, 8.30pm,
• Sunday, July 25: New York Football Challenge 3rd place match, Fox Soccer Channel + FoxSoccer.tv, 1pm
• Sunday, July 25: New York Football Challenge Final, Fox Soccer Channel + FoxSoccer.tv, 3:30pm
• Sunday, July 25: Kansas City Wizards v Man United, Fox Soccer Channel, 6pm
• Wednesday, July 28: MLS All-Stars v Man United, ESPN3.com and ESPN2, 8.30pm
• Saturday, August 7: LA Galaxy v Real Madrid, Fox Soccer Channel, 10.30pm
• Sunday, August 8: Community Shield, Chelsea v Man United, Fox Soccer Channel, 10am

The list of summer friendlies is definitely not as many as what we saw two years ago when Setanta Sports seemed to be carrying a ton of preseason games. But times have changed. In the coming days to weeks, I expect to see more games added such as the annual Emirates Cup and other tournaments. GolTV usually shows a few friendlies involving European teams also.

Here’s the complete list of preseason friendlies being played by European teams this summer across the United States. And here’s the list of preseason friendlies being played by Premier League clubs around the world.

Out of the above games, which ones are you looking forward to watching the most? And which ones will you be attending in person?