Smile, don’t spit! You’re on candid PlayerCam

Danish broadcaster, Dr, had a camera on Totti and Poulsen for the entire match to see which one of them came out on top in their midfield battle. Broadcasters with rights to the tournament can book additional camera positions for matches involving their home teams. They can use these to feed additional live pictures to complement the pool feed provided to all rights holders around Europe.

• BIG BROTHER ON FIELD

The player cam is similar to the reality television show “Big Brother” which tracks every minute of the lives of contestants trapped in a studio bubble. Players at Euro 2004 are unwittingly in a similar scenario.

• EDIT TABLE DISCOVERY

Danish TV spotted the spitting incident when it came to edit footage from an analysis camera behind one of the goals. Totti can count himself unlucky as lesser-known players are more likely to escape the covert camera’s attention.

• TOTTI’S DEFENCE

During his hearing, Totti’s lawyer Giulia Bongiorno questioned the use of the player-cam, labelling it a “trap”. “If you film a player for 90 minutes sooner or later you are going to get something illicit,” she said.

• MORE FROM THE SPITTOON

Even before the days of player-cam, footballers were caught out by the camera – Dutchman Frank Rijkaard infamously spat at German Rudi Voeller at the World Cup in 1990. UEFA banned Lazio defender Sinisa Mihajlovic for eight games in November after television footage showed him spitting at Chelsea’s Adrian Mutu in a Champions League clash.

• IT’S A BOGEY, SAYS WOODS

Only on Tuesday world number one Tiger Woods criticised television experts for constantly analysising his golf swing. “They watch one golf shot, and they analyse — which I think is pretty funny,” he said. “That is where you can get into a problem, trying to analyse things you do not understand. Am I tired of it? Yeah.”

• NO SPITTING BUT THIS ISN’T CRICKET

In cricket, television replays coupled with new technology can now accurately show whether a batsman is out lbw, causing umpires to be constantly criticised for wrong decisions.

— Mark Meadows (Reuters)