Eurosport to be the Essential Guide to Football Fans for the 2014 FIFA World Cup

Eurosport will be the essential place to follow the FIFA 2014 World Cup as it happens with live breaking news from its on-site studio at the iconic Copacabana beach, five daily TV shows, a line-up of world-class experts and on-site teams reporting in Brazil. Eurosport also has an extensive online offer for fans on the move.

Eurosport’s all-star international team of consultants includes Arsenal’s world-famous coach Arsène Wenger, 1990 German World Cup winner Thomas Berthold, England’s goalkeeper at the 2010 World Cup David James, Queens Park Rangers combative and charismatic midfielder, Joey Barton, and three-time Serie A winner, former Inter Milan, Leeds and French international player Olivier Dacourt.

Wenger has been sharing his opinions with Eurosport’s fans since the 2010 World Cup. “Le Professeur” is recognized as one of the finest football analysts in the game.

Berthold first joined Eurosport for the UEFA 2012 EURO and has been covering the Bundesliga since the 2012 season. He said: “Our coverage of the Bundesliga gives me insight into the German players and the best current international players. I am also very close to Serie A, having played four years in Italy. I know what it takes to win a World Cup and sadly to lose a final. I am looking forward to sharing all this experience with Eurosport’s viewers”.

James, who retired in 2013, makes his Eurosport debut and brings an in-depth knowledge of the English squad and Premier League players. James said: “I’m excited about covering the tournament in Brazil for Eurosport on its “Copacabana Live” show. I think the World Cup will be fascinating and our show will keep fans informed with all the latest news and stories. I can’t wait to be on site and visit Brazil for the first time and share my expertise with Eurosport’s football fans.”

Barton, who is at QPR after one season with Ligue 1 team Marseille, is famous for his colourful comments and outspoken attitude. He said: ”I am really excited about the opportunity to work with Eurosport for the Brazil World Cup. You cannot beat seeing the best players in the world pit their wits against each other in a tournament environment.  I am sure there will be a few surprise packages as well. I remember always looking forward to watching the World Cup as a kid, playing for your country is the pinnacle of any professional’s career and I am sure the players on show will not want to disappoint on the world stage.”

Barton added: “The viewers can expect me to pull no punches with my views, there will certainly be no sitting on the fence. I have never seen the point in pundits who do not give proper insight from a player’s perspective, so you will also get plenty of that. Eurosport has promised to create a unique panel for the tournament, hopefully I can bring a balance of professional analysis as well as a bit of wit to the table”.

Eurosport’s daily coverage runs from early morning to late evening and will feature live breaking news and all the experts views, it includes:

“BRAZILMANIA” at 08:30 CET

Coverage starts with “Brazilmania”, a 15-minute programme featuring a review of the previous day and a preview of the day ahead. The previous night’s matches are reviewed through the Eurosport pundits’ analysis and a “Top & Flop” section using Opta statistics. The upcoming matches of the day are previewed by the pundits alongside reports from on-site journalists.

“BOM DIA RIO” at 14:30 and 17:30 CET

Coverage continues in the afternoon with “Bom Dia Rio”, a ten-minute flash news broadcast live from Eurosport’s on-site studio at 14:30 and 17:30 CET. It’s morning in Brazil, and “Bom Dia Rio”, which means “Good Morning Rio” in Portuguese, features a preview of the day ahead. Presented by Eurosport’s local Brazilian journalist Carolina de Moraes, “Bom Dia Rio” brings the morning flavour from Brazil, a look at the local press, the talking points of the day and a focus on the day’s first match at 18:00 CET. “Bom Dia Rio” also includes reports on how Brazilians are living and breathing their World Cup.

“COPACABANA LIVE” at 20:30 and 23:30 CET

In the evening Eurosport broadcasts “Copacabana Live”, a 30-minute live show scheduled at 20:30 and 23:30 CET (21:30 and 00:00 CET from 23 June). Presented by Ashley House from the on-site studio at Copacabana, the two live shows feature expertise from Thomas Berthold, David James, Arsène Wenger, Joey Barton and Olivier Dacourt to preview the matches held at 21:00 and 00:00 CET and looks back at the matches held at 18:00 and 21:00 CET.  The latest news before the kick-off will be given by Eurosport’s journalists live from the stadiums. Viewers will be alerted of every goal scored with instant live scoring graphics.

A partnership between Eurosport and Opta will also designate the most valuable player (“MVP”) of each match as well as the “MVP” after the group phases. The “MVP” is selected according to statistical criteria chosen by Eurosport. Will the experts agree with the Opta MVP choice? The answer is in “Copacabana Live”.

Finally two special features will be broadcast in “Copacabana Live” and “Bom Dia Rio” to bring an extra Brazilian touch to Eurosport’s TV coverage:

– Real Pele. This daily sequence will show how the Brazilian legend is living this World Cup at home, 44 years after his victory in the 1970 tournament, including his reactions before and after the matches

– Inside Selecao: exclusive daily behind-the-scenes insight into the Brazilian team, from the training session to the locker room.

Another cornerstone of Eurosport’s World Cup offer will be extensive online coverage on Eurosport’s websites. Eurosport.com will be the one stop destination for all fans to share their passion, get the latest news, articles, videos and enjoy in-depth information on PC, mobile and tablet.

The heart of the coverage will be the live hub, running 24/7 in the numerous different languages of Eurosport.com and enabling fans to follow the World Cup as it happens. The hub features live written commentaries from all 64 matches, interviews, videos, articles from Eurosport’s editorial teams and all the latest news, curated from platforms including Twitter, Instagram and various other websites. Last-minute injuries, controversial quotes – fans won’t miss anything on the live hub. Eurosport.com also includes dedicated pages on the teams, groups, players and stadiums.

Fans in the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain will enjoy the unique expertise of José Mourinho on Eurosport Yahoo! co-branded websites in these markets. The “Special One” will deliver his analysis during the whole competition. Click here to access his latest thoughts.

To go deeper into the World Cup Eurosport.com will also launch three companion websites:

– “Data World Cup”, an innovative DataVizualisation project using an unrivalled statistics database to compare teams, analyse players and enhance predictions; available on dataworldcup.eurosport.com

– “Best 11”, to create and publish on social media your own ideal World Cup squad; available on best11.eurosport.com from 28 May

– “Work Cup”, the first world cup prediction game enabling teams to compete head to head at work and challenge other companies; available on workcup.eurosport.com from 4 June.