Live on ESPN Saturday, July 21
David Beckham: New Beginnings Documentary at 7:30 p.m.; Additional Coverage on
ESPNSoccernet.com; ESPN360.com; SportsCenter and ESPNEWS ESPN will
use its multimedia assets to present unprecedented live coverage of David
Beckham's Major League Soccer (MLS) debut Saturday, July 21 at 9 p.m. ET, as the
Los Angeles Galaxy host Chelsea F.C. of the English Premier League in an
international club contest at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. The
planned coverage of Beckham's arrival, which includes exclusive and
access-driven programming content, represents ESPN's most expansive initiative
ever for a single U.S. domestic soccer event.
Game day coverage will begin with pre-match reports on SportsCenter
at 6 p.m. The network's flagship news and information program will also offer an
expanded 30-minute edition at 7 p.m. with interviews, updates and pre-match
festivities from The Home Depot Center.
"Beckham's move to Major League Soccer is a landmark moment for the
league and for soccer in America," said Scott Guglielmino, ESPN's vice president
of programming and acquisitions. "Our coverage will appear across several ESPN
platforms and will chronicle this historic moment well beyond the game telecast
with the depth and context it deserves."
ESPN and ABC's lead soccer play-by-play commentator Dave O'Brien,
analysts Eric Wynalda and Tommy Smyth, and sideline reporter Allen Hopkins will
call the match. Rob Stone will host a 30-minute pre-match show with analyst
Julie Foudy from The Home Depot Center, followed by the match at 9 p.m. Planned
highlights of the match telecast:
• 19 cameras, including Skycam, super slo-mo cameras and robotic
goal cams;
• Beckham Cam: A player-isolation camera focusing on Beckham's every
move throughout the match. "Beckham Cam" will be featured
extensively on ESPN360.com;
• Celebrity Cam: An on-field and in-the-stands wireless steady-cam
identifying celebrity fans and getting their reactions to
Beckham's play;
• Reggie Bush appearance: The New Orleans Saints' all-purpose back –
featured with Beckham in adidas' new "Futbol vs. Football"
campaign – will join O'Brien, Wynalda and Smyth in the booth to
discuss the campaign;
• Hopkins will conduct in-match interviews with players and coaches.
Ancillary Programming on SportsCenter, ESPNEWS and ESPN360.com

• SPORTSCENTER (6 – 7:30 p.m.) – On match-day, the 6 p.m. edition of
SportsCenter will feature extensive
coverage of David Beckham's move to Major League Soccer. The last 30 minutes of
the expanded edition will focus on Beckham-related news, interviews and analysis
and live reports from The Home Depot Center;
• ESPNEWS: Throughout the week leading up to Beckham's debut, the
nation's only 24-hour sports news television network, will
present news, interviews, opinion and analysis surrounding
Beckham's move to MLS;
• ESPN360.com: ESPN's broadband coverage will feature a unique view
of the Chelsea-Galaxy match via "Beckham Cam," which will track
his play on the field, provide look-ins to his family in the stands
and offer a continuous stream of Beckham career stats, facts, bio info, as well
as "live" in-game stats from the match;
• ESPN.com and ESPNSoccernet.com: A multimedia E-Ticket package will
blend online video, photos and feature reporting to profile
Beckham and examine his move to MLS and the potential impact he will
have on soccer in the United States.
Beckham is joining the Los Angeles Galaxy after four years with
Real Madrid – one of the most successful and prestigious soccer clubs in the
world. He helped the Madrid side win the 2006-07 Spanish League title before
leaving the club last month. He played for England's national team in the last
three FIFA World Cup tournaments and served as captain from 2000–06. Though
initially left off national team call-ups, Beckham was recalled on May 26, and
he assisted on three of the four England goals in the two matches he played.

David Beckham: New Beginnings, ESPN at 7:30 p.m., July 21
Leading into the match, ESPN will feature David Beckham: New
Beginnings, a one-hour documentary chronicling the soccer megastar's journey
from ending his European club career to starting his new career across the
Atlantic in Los Angeles in Major League Soccer. The documentary will include
unprecedented access to Beckham as he and his family prepare for their new life
in America. It will also feature Beckham's recent comebacks – his recall to
England's national team and the improbable role he played Real Madrid's 2007 La
Liga title campaign. Click here for excerpts from Beckham's exclusive interview.
Other highlights:
• A look at Beckham's ambitious, lucrative and brave new adventure
in America;
• Beckham speaks: Insights from the man himself about rejoining
England's national team, how his teammates reacted, reflections
on playing for the national team for the first time at the new Wembley
Stadium, and his thoughts on the future of his international career and Euro
2008 while playing for the Galaxy;
• Behind the scenes footage of the adidas "Futbol vs. Football"
campaign spot with Beckham and New Orleans Saints all-purpose
running back Reggie Bush
• Highlights of Beckham's first week in Los Angeles – training with the
Galaxy, his official introduction to fans at The Home Depot Center
(July 13) and his trip to the 2007 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game
(July 19)
• Comments from some of the LA Galaxy's celebrity fans on Beckham's
arrival.

CONSUMER MARKETING CAMPAIGN
The ESPN marketing team behind the critically acclaimed 2006 FIFA
World Cup "One Game Changes Everything" campaign will launch a new
soccer-specific image campaign tied to David Beckham's Major League Soccer
debut. The multimedia campaign, entitled "Hello, Goodbye," will debut Monday,
July 9, during ESPN's telecast of the 2007 State Farm Home Run Derby Monday at 8
p.m. – traditionally the network's highest-rated and most-watched summer
program. The campaign will run through Saturday, July 21.
The primary television spot captures the excitement – and sadness
overseas – surrounding Beckham's arrival in the U.S. Set to the Beatles' hit
song, "Hello, Goodbye," the spot offers the juxtaposition of contrasting images
and emotions – pensive European fans devastated by the loss of Beckham and
American fans reveling in his arrival.
"Hello, Goodbye" will be featured across ESPN media platforms –
ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPN Radio, ESPN.com, ESPN360.com, ESPN The Magazine, et al.
Beyond exposures on ESPN, the campaign will include a print component in a
national newspaper.
ESPN Zone
ESPN Zone Anaheim, the Southern California location of the sports-themed
national restaurant chain, will host an all-day viewing party to commemorate
Beckham's first match in a Major League Soccer uniform Saturday, July 21.
- mls07 -




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