CBS Sports are debuting several changes to enhance their coverage of the UEFA Champions League.
First up is that the pre-game coverage on CBS All Access for the 12:55PM ET kickoffs will be reduced from 60 to 30 minutes. The change is a direct result of analyzing the audience trends and looking at the best way to program [coverage] for the audience, according to an executive from CBS Sports.
While the pre-game for the early kickoffs will be trimmed by 30 minutes, the separate preview show on CBS Sports HQ will continue to begin at 11AM ET. Additionally, the pre-match coverage for the 3PM ET kickoffs on CBS All Access will now begin at 2PM ET. And in another change, it’ll be available on CBS Sports Network as well.
“It makes sense for us to extend the lead-in for the second set of games (the 3PM ET kickoffs),” explained Executive Vice President and General Manager at CBS Sports Digital Jeffrey Gertula. “There are a lot of games, storylines and interest, and then the ability to do live look-ins.
“After the games end [around 5PM ET], we’re going to expand the distribution of the post-game show to include CBS Sports Network.”
“We want to expose our coverage of the sport to more people,” added CBS Sports Senior Creative Director Pete Radovich. “From 2PM to 6PM, it’s a good four hour block for hardcore fans. They’re not going to miss a thing. And if you want to watch a game, every game is available on CBS All Access. But if you’re not on All Access, we want to provide the service and let people know that we’re proud of what we’re doing and we want to expose it to as many people as we can.”
SEE MORE: Schedule of UEFA Champions League games on US TV and streaming
One more change that viewers can expect this week is that Nico Cantor will commentate the Rennes-Chelsea game on Tuesday beginning at 12:55PM ET alongside co-commentator Matthew Upson. After the match ends, Cantor will move across the London studio to take his regular role as the presenter of The Golazo Show.
