Best foot forward

CNN-IBN and IBN 7 too have jumped onto the bandwagon. Under the umbrella show The Beautiful Game,CNN-IBN has begun telecasting a slew of specials. In the pre-tournament phase the programmes included analyses of the favourite teams,predictions and the histories of the teams,while during the tournament,the show is focussing on analysing the matches. IBN-7 too has half-hour specials in their series Goal.

All news channels will be reporting on the matches,but it’s BBC World that has the most exhaustive bouquet of programmes. Atkins explains,“We don’t have the tournament telecasting rights. So we have to make do with innovative programming. We’ve found that people who care about football,also care about the impact that their game has on the host country and its economy.” The reports will include economic and ecological impacts of the tournaments and will also have segments which will directly link fans with one another.”

Music channel,9XM has its animated characters celebrating this premier football tournament with a new 9XM Anthem,which will have their characters Bade-Chote,Bheegi Billi,Betel Nuts and Badshah Bhai — in the midst of an action-packed football match.
Will the shows manage to capture the interest of the Indian viewer,who has traditionally been more of a cricket fan? Gaurav Kalra,sports editor of CNN-IBN,says,“It’s wrong to assume that there aren’t enough football fans in India. It’s true they’re fewer than cricket fans,but the number is steadily growing. Unfortunately for India,the actual matches are at midnight. So we have to give the fans something to chew on during prime time. That way,it’s an advantage for the Indian channels which telecast FIFA specials,since they will gain a lot of viewership.” According to Atkins,“Indian viewers are more cosmopolitan these days and it doesn’t matter to them that their national team only has a marginal presence in the sport. They make up by supporting other teams,with Brazil being a special favourite.” Football fan Unni Shreedharan admits that he’s happy with the offerings on television. “In the Doordarshan days,we couldn’t even watch the matches and had to be content with news reports. Now we can not only watch the matches,but also listen to experts from around the world analyse the teams,apart from getting a lot of trivia — a boon for football fanatics like me.”

However,the football fever has not quite turned into a frenzy of competitive programming. Pix,apart from showing the official movie,is not telecasting any of the myriad football films that have been made over the years,with Aaron stating that they want to focus on their other plans as well. As for Cartoon Network,it has simply taken the mania from one medium to the other— the channel has created Toon Football,an online football tournament. When asked why no specials have been planned for television,Benjamin Grubbs,regional director of Turner International Interactive Media explains,“With the growing popularity of both the online space as well as football as a sport,we thought it would be a perfect opportunity to combine these two to provide an exciting experience for our viewers.”