The highlight restrictions placed on ESPN during the FIFA World Cup has forced the net to "get creative" when it comes to covering the event, according to Jonathan Tannenwald of PHILLY.com. The net "can't show game footage on any of its studio shows or on its website," while "SportsCenter" is limited to "two minutes of highlights per show" from 6:00pm-12:00am ET. That has led to ESPN soccer analyst Taylor Twellman doing "tactical analysis videos with Legos," while "SportsCenter" host Scott Van Pelt has "asked viewers to send in their kids' drawing of the actions." These particular restrictions apply only to this tournament, as ESPN negotiates with Fox "on an event-by-event basis." It actually may be noteworthy that ESPN is "giving such prominence to an event it doesn't have rights for." The net could have left the World Cup "to the side, especially amid the frenzy of NBA free agency," but that "hasn't happened." "ESPN FC" Coordinating Producer Steve Palese said, "There was a commitment to do it, especially on SportsCenter, but I think it's only growing." Tannenwald noted "ESPN FC" moved to ESPN+ when the streaming platform launched in April, but it "has been back on TV during the World Cup." Palese: "We're on so close to the end of the games that we operate as if people have seen the games, because that's really the only way to do it" (PHILLY.com, 7/4).
