A soccer match between two top teams can be the most anticipated sports spectacle on any given day, hands down. Many TV viewers worldwide, especially in the United Kingdom, would rather watch a soccer game than any other sports event, be it baseball, basketball or boxing. Nothing beats the thrill of an exhilarating goal or the adrenaline rush of live soccer action.
As such, it can be quite a drag for football fans when an exciting AC Milan versus Arsenal or Internazionale against Roma match will be aired when they will most likely be out to work or already fast asleep. It can also be a bit frustrating for some soccer fans when they are not even sure if a particular game they want to watch will be shown on their television or not. It is quite unfortunate if they have soccer TV schedules but the games they really want to enjoy are not shown by the cable providers in their particular regions.
So how do you watch the games in your respective country? Here’s a list that should help you out.
ENGLAND
Thank goodness for the geniuses who made recent Internet advancements possible. Soccer diehards can now watch live football online and have their fill of the excitement that only soccer can bring. Sites like Soccerlens.com, Setanta Sports Channel and Sky Sports, provide fans with the chance to never miss a game. The video clarity, streaming speed and overall quality may vary due to the Internet connection and also the online traffic to and from the sites. With the proper equipment and a fast enough Internet connection, however, the experience can be just like football on TV. But regardless of the video quality, live football online is better than no football at all.
To get a comprehensive list of the live soccer games online, fans can log in to livesportsonpc.com. They will have to download various peer to peer (P2P) programs to be able to watch the live coverage, though. After completing the program downloads, choosing from the live soccer matches will be as quick as a flash. An alphabetical list of the channels airing live football matches as they happen is available to allow soccer fans to choose the games they want to watch.
EUROPE
Most if not all European-based soccer clubs have their own Web sites, which provide online video content to their respective fans and to anyone who wants to view it. However, due to TV contracts and various other restrictions, such as those coming from the FA, Premiership clubs are prohibited from airing live coverage of their games on their Web sites. They are allowed, however, to post their games via taped delay and provide audio and text updates during the actual matches.
Furthermore, most ball clubs offer video highlights, interviews, footage and documentaries after their games. Some of the teams offering video content are Aston Villa, Liverpool, Arsenal, Bolton Wanderers, Manchester City, Manchester United, West Bromwich Albion, West Newcastle United, Ham United, and Blackburn Rovers.
Football fans who do not have the luxury of having computers with Internet connectivity, or those who simply prefer to watch soccer on TV, can do so through various sports channels, such as Telefutura and Univision for Spain, Delicast and Tvforus for Italy, CANAL+ for France and SSN for Germany. These channels are directly linked to football TV schedules so that fans can know exactly when to get on their couch in front of their telly and get a dose of goal fever.
Several of these sports networks charge their subscribers to be able to watch live soccer matches. Fans who love Premiership football matches may want to subscribe to Sky Sports or Setanta Sports since they are the two largest UK-based networks that air Premiership games. Aside from providing Premiership football matches on TV, they also offer live games from said league online.
NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA
ESPN, ESPN 2, Fox Sports, Fox Soccer Channel Galavision, Setanta Sports Channel and GolTV cater to North American subscribers. Football aficionados from North America can choose from a monthly or annual subscription plan. Setanta provides monthly subscribers with access to 150 of the Barclay’s Premiere League games aired every Saturday at 7:30 am ET and 10:00 am; every Sunday at 8:30 am ET; and every Monday at 3:00 pm. They also air football matches on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Fans who miss a particular match may catch it via delayed taped telecast and on demand.
Setanta Broadband provides games on a per-match or package basis via Pay-Per-View from the Portuguese Superliga, UEFA Cup, UEFA Champions League, and World Cup Qualifiers. Monthly subscribers can watch matches from said leagues 24 hours after the actual live coverage via delayed taped telecast while annual subscribers get to watch them live for free.
UK based Setanta subscribers get to enjoy more soccer action since they can watch matches from the Barclay’s Premiere League, Scottish Premiere League, FA Cup, Le Championnat of France, Netherlands’ Eredivisie, Germany’s Bundesliga, and the Potuguese Liga. They also get to enjoy some games from Africa, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, and Northern Ireland, as well as from the UEFA Cup.
Still in its formative phase, ESPN 360 still has a long way to go in order to provide quality soccer coverage. But judging from the service it provides at present, the future looks bright. Through ESPN 360, fans can watch matches that they normally would not be able to by merely subscribing to the ESPN group of networks. Fans, however, are required to be subscribers of participating high-speed Internet Service Providers like Verizon to be able to access this site’s video content.
AUSTRALIA
Australians who can never get enough football mania can get their fill with Fox Sports Australia. Fox Sports subscribers can get to enjoy up to four live Premiership games that they can choose from, like the Direct Ticket of Direct TV for National Football League games.
Furthermore, they are also entitled to enjoy five delayed telecast games per week from the Premiership. They can watch these taped matches anytime they want. Sadly, they cannot watch games from the UEFA Cup, UEFA Champions League, Carling Cup and the FA Cup, since Fox Sports Australia airs Premiership matches only.
With a vast array of Web sites and sports networks to choose from, soccer fans should have almost no problems if they want to watch live soccer. If they miss doing so, they can always watch them through delayed telecast or through Web sites witch post taped games. Football fans all over the world never want to miss a David Beckham classic and they never have to.
AFRICA AND ASIA
Most useful links for these are SuperSport and Setanta Sports. UK based Setanta subscribers get to enjoy more soccer action since they can watch matches from the Barclay’s Premiere League, Scottish Premiere League, FA Cup, Le Championnat of France, Netherlands’ Eredivisie, Germany’s Bundesliga, and the Potuguese Liga. They also get to enjoy some games from Africa, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, and Northern Ireland, as well as from the UEFA Cup.
So there you have it. Whilst England is by the the best place to catch the beautiful game, it’s easy to see that the rest of the world is doing the best they can to keep up with football fans’ insatiable appetite for the game.
With the introduction of more channels and websites to the football scene, there’s no doubt that the world will get the chance to see as much of the game as they can handle in the coming years.
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