Platini Opens the International Broadcast Centre in Vienna

With the European Championships just three days away, UEFA President Michel Platini turned on a switch in the International Broadcast Centre in Vienna, Austria. Taking place every four years, this European competition will prove to be the best international tournament since the World Cup in Germany two years ago.

Taking place in Austria and Switzerland, Euro 08' will be the first time in history that a European competition will be fed to networks around the world through one broadcast center, owned by UEFA (Union of European Football Associations). This way, UEFA can monitor what is viewed around the world at this event and control the quality in which the games are viewed.

Also for the first time, ESPN has purchased the rights to show all 31 games from Austria and Switzerland. The games and review shows will be shown on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN Classic along with high definition channels.

As the American interest in soccer grows in the United States with its own domestic league (Major League Soccer) and more viewers tuning into the World Cup and other international matches, it is good to see that ESPN purchases the rights to these major soccer events. Bringing the World Cup and European competitions into American homes will help the sport develop more in this country as well as put the world's best players on display.    

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