TV sports bonanza for soccer fans

Press, 10 April 1986, Page 40

TV sports bonanza for soccer fans

By DAVID LEGGAT Armchair soccer fans are in for a sporting bonanza when the World Cup finals are held in Mexico in June. Television New Zealand will be screening no less than 34 matches live, including every match from the second round through to the final on June 29. Of the 36 first round matches in the six groupings, television will provide live coverage of 18. That package includes all three qualifying games for the South American giants, Brazil and Argentina, as well as the 1982 finalist, West Germany. In addition, a half-hour

highlights programme will screen in the evenings. Eight nations will feature in two live games in the first round, Spain, Italy, the defending champion, Uruguay, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Belgium, South Korea and France. Only two competing countries, Russia and Iraq, will not be seen. England, the country with the biggest following in New Zealand, will only be seen live in one qualifying match, against Morocco. That was the only reservation of the World Cup producer, Mr Murray Allison, in assessing which matches would be taken from the

8.8. C. The timing of England’s other two games, against Portugal and Poland at 10 a.m. on a Wednesday and Thursday morning respectively, New Zealand time, does not fall into what Television New Zealand considers good audience or marketing time. Mr Allison added that it is possible one or both of those games might be taken, but he doubted it. “It would be nice to see ail three England games, but you have got to remember some of their recent past history is not that great, when you compare them with Argentina, Brazil, France

and Italy. But it is a little unfortunate,” he added. The big plus from the coverage would be the large spread of countries seen live. “Everybody gets a fair crack, and we will be seeing the best teams more often,” said Mr Allison. Television New Zealand’s treatment of the World Cup finals — 86 hours altogether — puts it in the “top bracket” over overseas sporting coverage, according to Mr Allison. That figure is below the time allocated to the Los Angeles Olympic Games of two years ago, and the intention for the Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh

later this year is 12 hours on each of the 10 days of competition. T.V.NX is negotiating for a former English international to be a member of its studio panel, along with the man who guided New Zealand to. its World Cup final place four years ago, John Adshead, and three of his men in Spain, Steve Sumner, Adrian Elrick and Sam Malcolmson. Commentaries on the matches will almost exclusively be in the hands, or mouths, of the 8.8. C. men, Barry Davies and John Motson. On four days, two matches will be shown live with a 75-

minute break in between. Where T.V.N.Z. has done its homework is ensuring that the two groups potentially the toughest — Group E, West Germany, Uruguay, Scotland and Denmark — and the most entertaining — Group D, dominated by Brazil — have received solid coverage. The first round games to be televised live are.— June 1: Opening ceremony and opening match, Italy v. Bulgaria, 6 a.m. June 2: Brazil v. Spain, 6 France v. Canada, 10 a.m. June 3: Argentina v. South Korea, 6 a.m. June 4: Mexico v. Belgium, 6 a.m. June 5: West Germany v. Uruguay, 6 a.m.

June fc Italy v. Argentina, 6 a.m. June 7: Brazil v. Algeria, 6 a.im; England v. Morocco, 10 a«m. June 8: Northern Ireland v. Spain, 6 ami4 Poland v. Portugal, 10 aan. June 9: West Germany v. Scotland, 8 aan. June 10: France v. Hungary, 6 aan. June 11: Argentina v. Bulgaria, 6 a.m. June 12: Belgium v. Paraguay, 6 aan. June IS: Brazil v. Northern Ireland, 6 a.m. June 14: Uruguay v. Scotland, 6 Denmark v. West Germany, 10 a.m. All second round matches, the quarter-finals, the semifinals, the third-place match and the final, will be screened live.