The World Cup is underway in Russia, and if you want to know who is going to win, the Union-Tribune’s Mark Zeigler has his predictions (with a nod to former SDSU coach Steve Fisher). If you want to watch, the TV schedule is listed below. The simple facts: All matches will be broadcast in English on Fox (Channel 5/69 in San Diego) or Fox Sports 1 (FS1). All matches will be broadcast in Spanish on Telemundo or Universo. There’s also live streaming available through Fox Sports Go and NBCSports.com and Telemundo.com. Here is the schedule: Advertisement All times PDT GROUP STAGE Thursday, June 14 Russia vs. Saudi Arabia, 8 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Friday, June 15 Egypt vs. Uruguay, 5 a.m., Fox Sports 1, Telemundo Morocco vs. Iran, 8 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Portugal vs. Spain, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Saturday, June 16 Advertisement France vs. Australia, 3 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Argentina vs. Iceland, 6 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Peru vs. Denmark, 9 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Croatia vs. Nigeria, noon, FS1, Telemundo Advertisement Sunday, June 17 Costa Rica vs. Serbia, 5 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Germany vs. Mexico, 8 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Brazil vs. Switzerland, 11 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Advertisement Monday, June 18 Sweden vs. South Korea, 5 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Belgium vs. Panama, 8 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Tunisia vs. England, 11 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Advertisement Tuesday, June 19 Colombia vs. Japan, 5 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Poland vs. Senegal, 8 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Russia vs. Egypt, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Advertisement Wednesday, June 20 Portugal vs. Morocco, 5 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Uruguay vs. Saudi Arabia, 8 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Iran vs. Spain, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Advertisement Thursday, June 21 Denmark vs. Australia, 5 a.m., FS1, Telemundo France vs. Peru, 8 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Argentina vs. Croatia, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Advertisement Friday, June 22 Brazil vs. Costa Rica, 5 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Nigeria vs. Iceland, 8 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Serbia vs. Switzerland, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Advertisement Saturday, June 23 Belgium vs. Tunisia, 5 a.m., Fox, Telemundo South Korea vs. Mexico, 8 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Germany vs. Sweden, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Advertisement Sunday, June 24 England vs. Panama, 5 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Japan vs. Senegal, 8 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Poland vs. Colombia, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Advertisement Monday, June 25 Uruguay vs. Russia, 7 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Saudi Arabia vs. Egypt, 7 a.m., FS1, Universo Spain vs. Morocco, 11 a.m., FS1, Universo Advertisement Iran vs. Portugal, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Tuesday, June 26 Denmark vs. France, 7 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Australia vs. Peru, 7 a.m., FS1, Universo Advertisement Iceland vs. Croatia, 11 a.m., FS1, Universo Nigeria vs. Argentina, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Wednesday, June 27 Mexico vs. Sweden, 7 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Advertisement South Korea vs. Germany, 7 a.m., FS1, Universo Serbia vs. Brazil, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Switzerland vs. Costa Rica, 11 a.m., FS1, Universo Thursday, June 28 Advertisement Senegal vs. Colombia, 7 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Japan vs. Poland, 7 a.m., FS1, Universo England vs. Belgium, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Panama vs. Tunisia, 11 a.m., FS1, Universo Advertisement SECOND ROUND Saturday, June 30 1C vs. 2D, 7 a.m., Fox, Telemundo. 1A vs. 2B, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo. Sunday, July 1 Advertisement 1B vs. 2A, 7 a.m., Fox, Telemundo 1D vs. 2C, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Monday, July 2 1E vs. 2F, 7 a.m., FS1, Telemundo. Advertisement 1G vs. 2H, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Tuesday, July 3 1F vs. 2E, 7 a.m., FS1, Telemundo. 1H vs. 2G, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo. Advertisement QUARTERFINALS Friday, July 6 Match 57: 1C-2D winner vs. 1A-2B winner, 7 a.m., FS1, Telemundo Match 58: 1E-2F winner vs. 1G-2H winner, 11 a.m., FS1, Telemundo. Saturday, July 7 Advertisement Match 59: 1F-2E winner vs. 1H-2G winner, 7 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Match 60: 1B-2A winner vs. 1D-2C winner, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo SEMIFINALS Tuesday, July 10 Match 57 winner vs. Match 58 winner, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Advertisement Wednesday, July 11 Match 59 winner vs. Match 60 winner, 11 a.m., Fox, Telemundo THIRD PLACE Saturday, July 14 Semifinals losers, 7 a.m., Fox, Telemundo Advertisement CHAMPIONSHIP Sunday, July 15 Semifinals winners, 8 a.m, Fox, Telemundo Advertisement Sports Videos jay.posner@sduniontribune.com; Twitter: @sdutposner<doc-sep>By Charles Boehm – WASHINGTON, DC (Jun 22, 2018) US Soccer Players – With over a week of action now in the books, the 2018 World Cup is approaching its halfway point in terms of matches played. It’s not a bad time to take stock of the way broadcasters show the event on television in the United States. Most viewers’ reactions to coverage of a big occasion like this tend to revolve around the on-camera personalities. If you’re interacting with fellow World Cup fans in any sense, whether in-person or online, you’ve seen plenty of these reactions and may have a few strong ones of your own. For me that’s low-hanging fruit, and I’m less interested in adding to that din of opinion in this space. I’m most intrigued by the task – in this case, the job falls to Fox – of delivering this massive tournament to the general US audience in a way that works for everyone. Or, at the very least, hopefully, a majority. With each passing day of this World Cup, I’m adjusting my expectations downward, even as my respect for the magnitude of Fox’s assignment grows. Broadcasts of Russia 2018 are available to many millions of viewers in both English (on Fox and its cable sports channel FS1) and Spanish (on Telemundo). That’s an interesting choice, and thus opportunity, for soccer watchers, and something of a challenge for the TV networks, particularly Fox. Some people simply cannot get used to watching sports in a language they don’t speak. After decades of hunting for live soccer on any channel or medium they can get their hands on, that applies to fewer fans here than ever. Even if your Spanish is nonexistent, Univision and Telemundo offer a wealth of compelling options, from Liga MX to the Portuguese and English leagues to select MLS games and now, with wall-to-wall World Cup coverage on Telemundo. This year marks Fox’s first airing of the men’s World Cup. They also hold the rights to the next two editions of the tournament, an overall eight-year package that reportedly cost them nearly $900 million. NBC-owned Telemundo spent even more, supposedly north of a cool billion. Of note: Even those striking numbers are a bargain of sorts. FIFA offered the 2026 rights to only them, via a closed auction meant as an olive branch for the decision to move Qatar 2022 to the busier fall period. That kept ESPN and others from driving prices up with competing bids. That said, those are enormous investments, and Fox is hardly a newcomer to this sport. It operated arguably the first prominent 24/7 soccer-first cable option to US audiences with the Fox Soccer Channel, which eventually became FS1, the home to nearly half of their Russia 2018 programming. The outlet’s particular weak spots long ago became infamous to hard-core viewers, though, leading to fretting about their World Cup presentation practically from the moment they won the rights in 2010. Occasionally odd play-by-play calls, over-the-top graphics, a fondness for scorching “hot takes” from pundits, a recurring tendency to dumb things down for non-soccer-savvy audiences – a general sense of valuing flash more than substance. There was rarely any doubt that Fox was trying hard. The issue was more one of a lack of feel for what audiences wanted, in presentation terms, at that particular point. Many of those doubters probably feel they’re already right about this summer’s World Cup. There’s plenty of pivotal action left, and thus ample opportunities to win over viewers. Yet, the broadcasts have for many been strangely inconsistent, caught in the no-man’s-land as the network labors to be all things to all people. Reportedly eager to have American voices lead the way, Fox put familiar names and faces like Alexi Lalas, Stu Holden, and Aly Wagner in the spotlight alongside big regional and global names like Fernando Fiore, Clarence Seedorf, and Guus Hiddink. They’ve worked hard to seduce casual fans who might’ve drifted away from this event without their home team to support, leaning on tentpole attractions like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi perhaps to a fault. Simultaneously they’ve tried to connect with the more knowledgeable “soccer first” demographic, as well as the younger, more elusive, “extremely online” generations with social-media-centric offerings. The network went big with their Red Square headquarters in Moscow. They packed its studio shows with familiar names and added new personalities in mid-stream as Lothar Matthaus was, strangely, replaced with Martin O’Neill earlier this week. Then there’s the announce teams. Only a third of their game commentators are actually at the matches they are covering in Russia. Holden, his partner John Strong and the team of JP Dellacamera and Tony Meola. The rest are calling the games off monitors in a Southern California studio. They’re all pros and have generally made the best of that challenge. Wagner and her partner Derek Rae are earning particular praise for their work. Still, it remains hard to understand why Fox decided that those costs, of all the many they’ve taken on for their World Cup ventures, were worth cutting. There’s a subtle but unmistakable difference when a broadcaster is on site, and anyone who tunes in to Telemundo can feel it. Despite paying FIFA even more for the rights than Fox did, the Spanish network has committed to a fully immersive experience. Every single World Cup game is on their mothership network, available free over the air to much of the United States. Their shoulder programming is sunny, compelling, and has even roped in non-sports properties like their morning and news shows. The overall tone, the feel, is beguilingly vibrant. I’ve made a point to watch both the Fox and Telemundo broadcasts, both the games themselves and the shoulder programming. Even with my kindergarten-level Spanish skills preventing me from absorbing the full nuances of the latter, I’ve found the differences to be striking, and tend to gravitate in Telemundo’s direction. I’m not alone. Early numbers show Telemundo raking in bigger audience numbers than Fox despite a smaller overall reach in terms of carriage. This is not meant to slight Fox’s talent or their staff, or their viewership numbers, which according to their press releases are setting records for their channels and are comparable to the previous three World Cups. I see deeper factors at work, that may even be impossible for them to overcome when compared to their Spanish-language counterpart. Fox seems to approach the World Cup as a product in need of selling, while Telemundo just basks in the joy of the world’s biggest party. To some extent this is inevitable. The audiences approach the sport from different places. Spanish speakers in the US tend to hail from soccer-mad backgrounds, where the game commands a dominant place in cultural and family life compared to the broad sporting buffet that the typical “mainstream” Anglo encounters. Speaking in general terms, Telemundo doesn’t have to convince a gridiron football lover or curious baseball or basketball fan to give the World Cup a try. They can hark back to multigenerational memories and intrinsic interest. Of course, there are places in this country where the same is true of non-Spanish-speakers, but perhaps not in the numbers or density that TV outlets need. Even if the Mexican and Colombian diasporas in the US are rooting for different teams in Russia, for example, both share a foundation of devotion and understanding that Fox can’t or won’t count on when appealing to English-speaking viewers. For those of us who speak soccer fluently, that can be intoxicating, even if we don’t speak Spanish so well. Even as an avowed hater of any and all commercials, I’ve found myself enjoying the ads on Telemundo, which tend to transmit that passion just like their broadcasters do. So spare some sympathy for Fox. A bigger potential audience is not always a blessing. Their challenge is not so different from that facing U.S. Soccer, MLS, and the rest of the American soccer infrastructure charged with improving our player development pathways and overall level of play as a whole.<doc-sep>Ricardo Mazalan/Associated Press Denmark and Australia started off Thursday's 2018 FIFA World Cup action, with two more matches to be played. Group C will continue, as favourites France take on Peru, while Argentina and Croatia will battle it out in Group D. The two sides are seen as the favourites to advance from Group D. France vs. Peru: 6 p.m. local time/4 p.m. BST/11 a.m. ET, ITV (UK)/Fox (U.S.) Argentina vs. Croatia: 9 p.m. local time/7 p.m. BST/2 p.m. ET, BBC (UK)/Fox (U.S.) Live-stream links: Fox Soccer Match Pass, ITV Hub and BBC iPlayer. Neither France nor Argentina looked like a potential world champion in their first outing, but both have the chance to grow into the tournament and turn some heads on Thursday. Les Bleus take on a feisty Peru side that impressed in their first outing but lost out to the more talented Denmark. Per Sky Sports News, the squad is mostly healthy going into the match: Video Play Button Videos you might like France have bags of talent and should be able to handle the Peruvians even if they once again fail to play their best. Peru struggled in front of goal against Denmark, and France's defence should give them a tougher challenge. At the other end of the pitch, Les Bleus have countless options, with Antoine Griezmann and Kylian Mbappe expected to play around Olivier Giroud. Ousmane Dembele is among their many other possibilities in attack. For Argentina, that's where the main strengths lie as well. The Albiceleste didn't even bring Paulo Dybala off the bench in their draw with Iceland, a testament to their attacking depth. In hindsight, it may have been a mistake. The Juventus man maintains he can coexist with the team's biggest star: Lionel Messi had no space to work with against Iceland and can expect a similar approach from Croatia―it might be a good idea to introduce a second player who can run with the ball at his feet and create, forcing the European side to divide their midfield options. Luka Modric and Ivan Rakitic are superb creators, and keeping them busy with both Dybala and Messi could take them out of the match. It's a risky approach but one that could yield huge benefits.<doc-sep>
MIGUEL MEDINA/Getty Images Group H finally get their 2018 FIFA World Cup campaign under way on Tuesday as Colombia take on Japan and Poland play Senegal to complete the opening round of matches in Russia. The hosts then play their second match of the tournament against Egypt and will take huge momentum into the clash after their 5-0 win against Saudi Arabia. Here is where to catch all the action from the sixth day of the World Cup: Colombia vs. Japan, 3 p.m. local time (1 p.m. BST/8 a.m. ET), BBC (UK)/FS1 (U.S.) Poland vs. Senegal, 6 p.m. local time (4 p.m. BST/11 a.m. ET), ITV (UK)/FS1 (U.S.) Russia vs. Egypt, 9 p.m. local time (7 p.m. BST/2 p.m. ET), BBC (UK)/Fox (U.S.) Live-streaming links: BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, Fox Soccer MatchPass. Video Play Button Videos you might like Colombia were one of the most thrilling sides on show at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, and they arguably deserved to make it past the quarter-finals. James Rodriguez was their star man four years ago and won the Golden Boot, and he will be looking to light up the action again in Russia. Japan are arguably the easiest side Los Cafeteros will face in their group, as Senegal and Poland are both fine outfits. The Samurai Blue are ranked No. 61 in the world—Colombia are No. 16—and it seems unlikely they will be able to handle an attack that includes not just James, but Carlos Bacca, Juan Cuadrado and an in-form Radamel Falcao. Poland are ranked No. 8 in the world and Senegal only No. 27, but the African nation boast huge quality which could thrill in Russia. ISSOUF SANOGO/Getty Images They have an impressive spine to the side which includes Kalidou Koulibaly, Idrissa Gueye, Cheikhou Kouyate, Keita Balde and, most significantly, Sadio Mane. Poland's star is Robert Lewandowski, and the Bayern Munich man's contributions could be telling, as he does not have the strongest defence behind him—they have kept just one clean sheet in their last five games. Russia went into their World Cup under a cloud of negativity following a run of seven games without victory. However, they subverted expectations with a 5-0 drubbing of Saudi Arabia in the tournament opener. Egypt then lost to Uruguay and are now under huge pressure to get something from their meeting with the hosts or risk an early exit from the tournament. Crucially for the Pharaohs, Mohamed Salah looks set to be fit to return to action at the Krestovsky Stadium in Saint Petersburg, per BBC Sport: With the Liverpool superstar in the side, Egypt are a better team than Russia. But momentum can be hugely influential at a World Cup, and the two sides' contrasting opening fixtures make predicting the outcome of Tuesday's clash a major challenge.