More Copa Libertadores Please

By: Daryl | June 16th, 2007

The first leg of the Copa Libertadores final happened way back on Wednesday, with Boca Juniors beating Gremio 3-0 at home and taking a handsome lead into the second leg. Juan Roman Riquelme was apparently at his defence destroying best, including a lethal free kick. Got me wondering though, why isn’t the Copa Libertadores widely broadcast on an English language channel?

It’s Latin America’s best going toe to toe, basically like the Champions League without the silly anthem, and yet it’s very difficult to see games in English speaking countries. A team from Argentina taking on a team from Brazil in a continental final? Surely there’s a market for football that good.

It’s true that the very very best players gravitate towards Europe, but that still leaves an entire continent of top talent. Not just the returning stars like Riquelme, but exciting up and comers like Alexandre Pato who plays for current Copa Libertadores holders Internacional. Some wider exposure would close the knowledge gap for football hungry viewers who don’t speak Spanish. Seems the majority of viewers who watch the English, Spanish, Italian, German and French leagues would be equally interested in the Copa Libertadores, if it was available.

In North America for example, the Copa Libertadores is broadcast on Fox Sports en Español, which – as the name suggests – is entirely in Spanish and often only available if you subscribe to the entire Spanish language package. Which isn’t very useful if you don’t speak Spanish.

The second leg of the 2007 final happens this Wednesday at Gremio’s Olímpico Monumental ground. Gremio need to score at least three and not concede any (away goals count double) to get back in it. Won’t be easy, but if anyone can do it, it’s the club known as The Immortals. I’d love to see them try, but will have to wait for the newspaper reports and YouTube highlights to find out what happened.

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Keebee

you could always watch it on-line streaming....i was watching on Super England Channel on TVAnts, quality picture and english commentary to boot.

http://www.football4less.com
Ken

They may not play it in the stadiums but the pre-game and halftime shows on Fox Sports en Espanol always play this little classical piece during all the Libertadores matches.
james

i agree whole heartedly - especially when you compare what foxsports plays in english at the same time - old premier league games.

i remember some classic superclasicos between river and boca in copa lib a few years ago that had all (more) atmosphere than even a top euro game. Tevez, Robinho, Mascherano, etc etc all played in South America first. those leagues - especially Argentina and Brasil - have loads of (hungry) talent.

I wish the whole of us soccer from MLS to the federation to the average fan would start paying a little more attention to south american football since we share so much more in common with those countries than we do with europe. Uh i wonder what the averag wage is in the argentine league, i bet it is more than in the MLS which is to say it barely even blips on the radar of an EPL wage.

Copa Lib should be a centerpiece of fox soccer and not just in spanish.
Bruno Romani

im sorry, but i have to say copa libertadores does not have the silly anthem... words from someone who watched a good number of libertadores matches in the stadium and many more on tv.
Ken

Actually they do have their own silly anthem, it doesn't have any words though, just a short classical piece, not sure what the name is.

BTW now if you have DirecTV and have the Sports Pack (which you need for Fox Soccer Channel and GolTV), it now includes Fox Sports en Espanol. Now they just need to put ESPN Deportes in the Sports Pack.
Sam

"Champions League without the silly anthem."

God, Daryl, you're bang-on today!