Will NBC’s Premier League Coverage Hurt or Help Major League Soccer?
By Doug Smith
NBC Universal announced details of its coverage of the Barclays Premier League that will start later this summer. During the season all matches will be available to be expanded to overflow channels available to those with NBC Sports at no extra fee. The added original and studio programming means that NBC is going all in on their coverage of the English league. Meanwhile, NBC will begin the bidding war for the next round of broadcast rights for MLS later this year. Will the Premier League take away from or enhance the audience for the MLS?
Apr 14, 2013; Houston, TX, USA; Fans cheer after the Houston Dynamo defeat the Chicago Fire 3-1 at BBVA Compass Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
There are ways to argue either side of this question but the ultimate announcer may not be seen for years. The definite answer will come when the battle for broadcast rights of MLS comes due again. If the bidding goes up exponentially from the reported $12 million a year of the current contract, then the Premier League may be a factor for improving viewership of MLS. Only time will tell on the actual numbers.
The Premier League will have set windows that matches will be played. This means when someone wakes up at 7 am or 10 am depending on his or her U.S. coast they know a Premier League match will be available for viewing. It is similar to how the NFL is handled. MLS coverage does not have this. This past weekend matches on NBC Sports were at 4:30 p.m. ET on Saturday and 10:30 p.m. ET on Sunday. A fan can plan better off a routine from the windows, but they cannot plan as well for MLS kickoffs.
There are plenty that will say that being able to view the Premier League and MLS on the same day will show the gap between the two leagues. In other words, it would highlight the inferiority of MLS. If the quality of play is down in MLS then what would make people want to stay on their couches and watch the product? For viewers in the U.S. they want scoring and right now MLS is on pace for its lowest goals per game total ever. In contrast, at the end of January the Premier League was averaging 2.87 goals per game.
However, more soccer coverage in general can lead to more publicity for MLS. Upcoming matches can be repeatedly advertised on all of the Premier League matches. The schedules will not overlap very much aside from Toronto and New England starting a match at noon or 1 pm ET and coverage can lead right into the featured MLS match. This is an easy way to boost ratings.
Any improvements that are made in Premier League broadcasts can be adapted for the domestic league as well. The resources being poured into the Premier league may result in instant ratings, but the revenue can be trickled down through the soccer coverage on one series of networks. NBC is going all out on the Premier League so they will be putting all the resources up front, but they may have not put all the resources possible into MLS given that their rebranding of a sports network came at the same time as earning broadcast rights. This could be the time to prove their broadcasting prowess and then present the same quality for MLS.
Arlo White is supposed to move over to Premier League broadcasts with John Strong as his likely replacement for MLS broadcasts. This will provide a unique challenge for the coverage on NBC as much of the terminology used is still based out of England. What if Strong, or whomever the replacement is, used more American terms while the action on the field, rather than pitch, remains constant in approach? Would that help with those in the U.S. trying to buy into soccer? Could simple use of terminology make the casual fan more intrigued and thus able to get the global game through connection of rhetoric and action? Perhaps it is far-fetched but, it could be an outcome of two leagues on one network.
Here is the major caveat to this quandary. ESPN has recently begun broadcasting English language Liga MX matches. There are five more matches currently scheduled for broadcast on ESPN with only one scheduled to begin prior to 5:30 pm ET. Two of these matches will be in direct contradiction to MLS broadcasts and the chances of more overlap will increase as ESPN expands their coverage.
Jonathan Tannenwald also wrote on this topic. He was covering the NBC press conference live and can add more insights. So what do you think? Will the EPL help or hurt MLS in the long run?