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beIN Sport acquires television rights to USMNT road World Cup qualifiers

USAGuatemala (Getty Images)

Fans in the United States will no longer have to worry about U.S. men's national team World Cup qualifiers being shown on pay-per-view.

New sports network beIN Sport announced in a press release Wednesday that it has acquired exclusive rights to televise the national team's road qualifiers for the remainder of the 2014 World Cup cycle, starting with the final two matches of this round, Sept. 7 against Jamaica and Oct. 12 against Antigua and Barbuda. Assuming the U.S. men qualify for the final hexagonal round, the five road games will be televised on beIN Sport as well.

The network has also purchased the rights for all other CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers except games involving Mexico. Currently, beIN Sport is only available through DirecTV and Dish Network, but the network is in talks with other cable providers.

The issue of road qualifiers not having a home on cable television in the U.S. came to the forefront in June, when the Guatemalan federation, who controlled the rights for the home match against the U.S., elected to distribute them to carriers who only made them available on pay-per-view in the United States, with fans forced to pay $29.99 to see the match broadcast in standard definition. ESPN maintains the television rights to home U.S. qualifiers, whose rights are controlled by the U.S. Soccer Federation. 

What do you think of this development?

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Comments

  1. This is awesome. But you also need the Sports Pack from Directv ($13).

    If you have DirecTV with the Sports Pack (I do)you’ll get more soccer than you could possible watch. I’m glad I’ll be able to watch on TV rather than internet streams on a 3″ screen.

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  2. omg, because i spell out their plans (which are ON their website), i “work for them”. give me a break dude. i did the research and shared it so the knee jerk reactions would relax.

    1. what new channel has EVER released ALL their plans at once? never. i simply stated they PLAN to have mobile and online platforms per their website. nothing more, nothing less.

    2. what does that have to do with anything? not all cable users have FSC or GolTV. moot point.

    3. exactly, which should tell you they have every intention of getting onto every major cable provider’s listing. again, it states it on the website

    how do I sound naive when all i did was go to their website, read about their plans, and then bring back that information? to IGNORE that information is being naive…ignorant actually. i’ve even specifically stated that it is unknown if it’ll cost extra, like FSC+, HBO, etc. and then went on to say THAT would upset me.

    i also stated i was a firm hater on this network because im a La Liga fan and i don’t have Direct TV. but then i went to my friend’s place and watched it. not only did Phil and Ray specifically state viewers without access to beIN Sports would have good news soon (and to check the website for updates!), but i was extremely impressed with the quality.

    i have no stake in beIN Sports. i hated when i found out they got La Liga rights. but then i chilled out, went and watched it, then i DID do research and it is VERY clear what their intentions are. i’m not being naive by pointing out the facts. i also never said it was guaranteed your provider would get it. which is why i said, “if you want it, go request it via their website.”

    i cannot believe people are trying to act like i’m burning them by giving them information to calm them down. Fing internet…

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  3. All of those in HD some local comcast carriers refuse to add FSC GolTV in HD. But the extra thing DirecTV has that those other cable and satellite providers don’t have for soccer specifically is the Champions League and Europa League specialty channels which are free no matter what package you have. Those Champions League matches that aren’t on FSC, FSC Plus or Fox Sports Net are on those channels. So depending on who you support this may help. I suggest continue asking your provider for it, it works. Find a friend who has it and watch the game with him/her, Or go to any bar, they all have deals with DirecTV.

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