Not much has been posted here on Stan’s UEFA coverage, so with the UCL final wrapping up this morning which was also on 9Gem (which didn’t end well on my end ), here’s a summary of how I think they went…
Briefly on this morning, Stan cut away from the world feed commentator (who was Tony Jones, and before anyone asks, no relation!) as he had somehow managed to lose his voice. How UEFA let Tony go to air worldwide is pretty abysmal, really. They ended up taking commentary from BT Sport with Darren Fletcher on play-by-play. Credit to them for switching to an alternative feed quickly! Kick-off was delayed by half an hour due to some shambolic crowd organisation (reports that three gates suddenly shut on Liverpool fans, leaving only one entry for them to get into the Stade de France). Semra Hunter (who presents on La Liga TV, who aren’t great I have to say) was reporting that Liverpool fans were trying to force their way in, which social media video has so far disproven. Not surprisingly, she’s came under deserved fire for that online (and the other presenters seemed to pour cold water on that rumour).
Anyways, I thought Stan did a pretty decent job throughout. Production values were definitely a step above what Optus Sport provided, and their presenter lineup was really strong, with Craig Foster and Mark Bosnich providing solid analysis throughout the season with the touchscreen. The picture quality of the streams has been a particular standout, especially with 4K, something that Optus is badly lagging behind in, and need to improve on since they have the EPL for the next six seasons.
I haven’t seen much of their magazine shows, so there’s not much I can say; although Stan Sport FC does give me some old school The World Game vibes. Meanwhile, let’s just say Two Up Top with Max Rushden and Ed Kavalee is a bit of an acquired taste…
It obviously hasn’t been a 100% hit with fans though, with Stan Sport pricing being the main cause for complaint. It’s something that won’t change unless Stan has a re-think of their pricing structure, and I can’t see much changing there. I’d also like to see Nine show a few more games on 9Gem or even the main channel like they should have done for this morning (on that note, I did have a chuckle at Max’s cheeky digs at the 9Gem viewers when they were in commercial!).
Overall, it was a pretty impressive first season by them. It’s a pity they haven’t managed to get any other major competitions, even if it’s something like the FA Cup or any of the EFL leagues. I know I’d much rather watch the FA Cup on Stan’s platform than the mess that is Paramount+, not to mention that it would be a better value proposition for football fans.
(I’ll try and get some screenshots of their coverage when I get back home since the Stan app doesn’t allow screenshots!)