Fox Sports this year will introduce a red-zone channel "during the group stage of the UEFA Champions League with Multimatch 90, which will show up to eight games at a time as they are played simultaneously throughout Europe on 12 days, starting on Sept. 16 and ending on Dec. 10," according to Richard Sandomir of the N.Y. TIMES. An L.A.-based producer and a director "will curate the best action from the 32-team tournament, live and on replay, as rapidly as possible." Fox Sports Exec VP/Soccer Jonty Whitehead: "We might start off at the Real Madrid game. And say that a goal happens at the Emirates in London -- that will be spun back, recued, and the host will say, ‘Let’s cross to Emirates Stadium, where there’s some early action.'" Goals, saves, free kicks and penalties "will be among the triggers moving the channel from game to game." Multimatch 90 "will be available on Fox Soccer Plus, a channel available for $14.99 a month from some pay providers and on a sports tier from some others." There "will be a free preview of the channel on DirecTV, Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-verse from Oct. 18 to 26, with Dish offering a free look" from Oct. 15-29. Some cable operators "will offer free previews in select markets." Multimatch 90 "will also be available on the Fox Soccer 2Go website and app, which costs $19.99 a month, with a free seven-day trial that coincides with the first set of matches" on Sept. 16-17. John Strong, who also works for NBC Sports Group, "will be among the hosts of the channel." Whitehead said that analysts will be in an L.A. studio, "with one referee for analysis of the rules." Meanwhile, the EPL also "could warrant such a channel" from NBC Sports. An NBC spokesperson said, "It’s something we’ve contemplated ... and it remains under consideration" (N.Y. TIMES, 9/6).
