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NBC Sports changes MLS playoff broadcast schedule

By JOSE M. ROMERO

Due to Wednesday night’s postponement of the New York Red Bulls-DC United playoff second leg because of snow, NBC Sports Network has changed its broadcast schedule of MLS playoff games in the coming days.

New York hosts DCU tonight at 7:30pm  on the network, followed by the second leg of the MLS Western Conference semifinals between Real Salt Lake and the Seattle Sounders at 10:oo p.m.

The Eastern Conference championship match between the Houston Dynamo and the winner of RBNY-DCU at Houston will be seen on NBCSN on Sunday at 4pm. That’s a change from the original date of Saturday, and also a change of TV network from NBC to NBCSN.

It looks like the Red Bulls-DC United series will finally be completed after the host venues were switched due to Super Storm Sandy last week, and after a winter storm that swept through the Northeast Wednesday.

Thoughts on the broadcast schedule change this weekend? Will it affect anything else you had planned for your weekend TV viewing?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. I think NBC has done a nice job. I honestly don’t care between NBC and NBCSN…..for me, they’re just two separate channels on my DirecTV. I actually think I remember the number for NBCSN better because I don’t watch anything else on NBC and don’t know the number beyond it being “in the low numbers”

    I think a big thing for the growth of MLS will be to get ALL of the games on TV. A big reason I’m a fan of Manchester United is that almost every game they play is on live TV without having to buy a League Pass product. It makes me sad that you can’t do the same thing with MLS.

    Still….this nonsense in NY is a fricking circus! I know they can’t help the weather, but this is insane to have two games in a week postponed. And now we want to add another team there? Nuts…. Plus, remember the NYRB/LAG game last playoffs? The pitch looked like HELL from the snowplowing.

    Why don’t we put an expansion team in Oswego?

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  2. I thought it was super cool of NBC and NBCsports they switched the SKC game on last night after NYRB got postponed.

    NBC is really doing a nice job with their coverage and glad they are getting way more soccer. FSC was great for years but they are just slow low budget they can hardly compete with the modern day production value.

    Apart from Brandi Chastain their announcers are all good too. Obviously, if your watching women’s soccer you have bigger problems than who is calling the game.

    Turd Bradley

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  3. Is the conference chapionship a one game or two? And about the soccer calendar schedule, yes it would work but we need more teams in the southeast, southwest like san diego, el paso, albuqurque, las vegas, sacramento, san antonio, austin, oklahoma city or tulsa, miami, orlando, tampa bay, atl, sc,nc. If mls hits 26 or 28 teams, or24 because it has to be an even number then mls can easily work the “fifa calendar”

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  4. Perhaps a better point would be “imagine the changes to the schedule if we played through the winter like everyone wants us to.”

    Personally I haven’t seen any of the games on big NBC because they are always on in the afternoon. I don’t think we’ve seen any real growth in followers because of it either, but it certainly hasn’t hurt.

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  5. So big NBC was willing to give us a little Saturday airtime but not on Sunday.
    And by the way, remember how everyone thought the NBCSports deal would mean soccer growth through the big NBC Network? How’s that worked out so far?

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    • I think it’s worked out well. I harbor no ill will towards their said goals and ideas. NBC has played numerous matches on the mother channel. More than I expected, actually. I have no problem with the changes they’ve announced today. It’s business and I see it a that way. I could careless what NBC channel matches are on since I have access to both.

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    • The move makes sense. The MLS (Not NBC) moved the date of the match from Saturday to Sunday to allow the winner of NY/DC more time to rest.

      NBC probably already had other programming at that time slot on Sunday. So they moved to the game to NBCSN.

      NBC has done a fine job covering MLS. Picking up the SKC/HOU match yesterday was classy. I have no problem with the game being on NBCSN on Sunday.

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    • Also, tonight’s double header is going to intense.. that SEA/RSL game is going to be an attacking fun game to watch… getcho’ pop corn ready!

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    • I think he was being sarcastic, there is no way he was serious.

      NBC has been absolutely incredible. 7 Sounders games in a row tonight that have been nationally televised. Imagine that two years ago.

      Their broadcasts are so far beyond FOX and ESPN, I don’t even want the games on ESPN. I actually dislike them there.

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      • I completely agree. Watching MLS on ESPN is painful. The audio is poor (of the atmosphere), the announcers are competing for biggest jackass award and the production quality is average.

        NBC Sports – grade A- work. (minus, if only to give them something to aim for)

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