What can American sports television steal from the World Cup? The answer is: quite a bit. This wasn’t just a win for soccer. It was a masterclass in sports television.
FOX’s English-language coverage averaged more than five million viewers during the group stage. It nearly doubled its audience from the 2022 tournament. The United States’ Round-of-32 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina drew roughly 24.4 million viewers before more than 33 million tuned in for the Americans’ loss to Belgium. Those aren’t niche numbers.
People weren’t watching because FOX invented a new camera angle or convinced Lionel Messi to wear a microphone. They watched because the event felt important. That’s Lesson No. 1: Trust the event.
Somewhere along the way, American sports television decided every second needed explaining. Every replay requires narration and controversial call needs a rules analyst. Every timeout needs another opinion or game requires someone updating your same-game parlay.
American broadcasts have become a group project. The play-by-play announcer tells you what happened. An analyst tells you why. The rules analyst tells you whether it counted and the betting analyst tells you your weekend is ruined. Somewhere in there, an insurance company sponsors the replay.
Action Tells The Story
The World Cup reminded broadcasters that sometimes the game is enough. Then there’s something American television fears more than bad ratings. Silence.
After a dramatic goal, soccer broadcasters stop talking. They let the crowd take over. The stadium becomes the soundtrack. Imagine that. There’s no race to be the first person speaking over the biggest moment.
Dead air isn’t dead. It’s atmosphere.
Baseball could use a little of that in October. After a walk-off home run, I don’t immediately need Statcast, launch angle, exit velocity, and a dissertation on whether the hitter shortened his swing with two strikes. Let me hear 45,000 people losing their minds. The numbers will still be there 10 seconds later.
Real Fans Matter
Another thing the World Cup got right? The fans. Not celebrities. Real fans.
The television cameras constantly searched for emotion instead of publicity. Nervous faces. Families. Kids wrapped in flags. Grown adults crying because their country just scored the biggest goal of their lifetime. Meanwhile, American broadcasts too often turn into an episode of Guess Who’s Sitting Courtside?
Nothing says “winner-take-all playoff game” quite like cutting to an actor promoting a streaming series that debuts next Thursday.
Show me the guy who emptied his savings account to bring his son to America for the games. Show me the grandmother wearing the same lucky jersey she’s owned since the Reagan administration. Those people are part of the broadcast.
Keep It Simple
Another lesson? Stop trying so hard to make everything cinematic.
Soccer’s wider camera angles let viewers see the sport unfold. You can watch space develop, defenders shift, and passing lanes open before the ball ever arrives. NBA broadcasts sometimes feel like the director won an Oscar for Best Close-Up. We’ve got drone shots. Spider cams. Slow-motion sneaker shots. Cameras so tight you can count the pores on a player’s forehead. It looks fantastic.
Too bad we missed the backdoor cut.
Technology should help viewers understand the game, not admire the technology.
The World Cup also reminded us that presentation matters. Every knockout match felt enormous because television treated it that way. The music. The entrances. The crowd. The anticipation. Nobody needs to convince viewers Spain versus Argentina matters. The broadcast simply gets out of the way and lets the occasion breathe.
It’s Never Going To Be Perfect
American sports cannot duplicate the World Cup’s do-or-die atmosphere every night. An NFL Sunday already feels like an event. The Super Bowl certainly doesn’t need help.
But baseball? Too many regular-season broadcasts feel like they are fulfilling a contractual obligation. Game 94 isn’t Game 7. But television doesn’t have to treat it like Game 94, either. Everything doesn’t need to be louder or faster. Everything certainly does not need another graphic flying across the screen.
There were things the World Cup didn’t do perfectly. Afternoon kickoff times weren’t ideal for North American viewers. FIFA’s expanded tournament occasionally felt like someone looked at a successful idea and said, “You know what this needs? Thirty-two more games.” Sports commissioners are remarkably consistent that way.
But the television product? American broadcast executives should have been taking notes. Not because soccer is somehow superior. Because great television is great television.
The World Cup reminded us that the biggest moments do not need to be manufactured. They need to be recognized.
That’s a lesson every producer, director, and announcer should remember before the NFL season begins. Sometimes the best television isn’t created in the production truck. It’s already happening on the field.
The smartest thing everyone can do is trust it.
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With decades of experience behind the mic, John Lund is more than a sports commentator and weekly columnist for Barrett Media—he’s a storyteller, humorist, and true fan. He’s hosted shows in mid sized markets like Pittsburgh and Salt Lake City to larger cities like San Francisco, Detroit and Dallas. John has even hosted nationally on ESPN Radio. Known for his sharp wit and deep sports knowledge, John welcomes your feedback. Reach him on X @JohnLundRadio or by email at John@JohnLundRadio.com.