It takes something special for a sports broadcast to outshine the action on the field. Yet that is often what happens on CBS Sports, where the Champions League studio show has struck a rare chord with viewers, most often broadcast on streaming branch Paramount+. The usual group (Kate Scott, Jamie Carragher, Thierry Henry, and Micah Richards), have become fixtures on the American TV circuit, thanks in large part to their on-air chemistry.
Scott guides the show expertly – all with with a mass of banter and ribbing along the way. There was one time on an intro where I used an analogy of a family and kind of the squabbles that can exist within a family, but the underlying thing being a mutual appreciation and love. There’s nothing I enjoy more than kind of irritating my brother and getting under his skin, and I think that can kind of apply within the group as well … But I think there’s always respect and love there that kind of underlines everything.” The Champions League hasn’t always been the most prized asset in American soccer broadcasting.
Before CBS obtained the competition’s broadcast rights in 2021, they were passed around by a number of rivals for over a decade. ESPN, Fox Sports, and Turner Sports all broadcast the competition at some point between 2008 and 2020, at times undervaluing its possible pull. Studio shows weren’t a staple until the latter stages of the season.
At times, it seemed like the Champions League was mostly a way for sports broadcasters to fill midweek daytime slots with live programming. Coinciding with the launch of a committed soccer channel on Paramount+, CBS turned heads when they announced their studio plans in 2021. Scott was already a trusted host after working on Turner’s Champions League broadcasts.
Henry’s playing career spoke for itself, and he further endeared himself to American soccer fans in his four-year stint with the New York Red Bulls. Carragher and Richards were known entities to those who followed the Premier League from afar and caught their Sky Sports clips on YouTube. While the CBS team insist they don’t code switch when speaking to US audiences, broadcasting an ocean away – they film from a studio in the UK – does offer room for fresh approaches.
But, certainly from my point of view, the way I probably let myself go a little bit more or try and wind someone up a little bit more than I would on English TV is because it’s on American TV. Not because [viewers are] American, but because I think I don’t know anyone. But you know, if you’re acting the goat on English TV, all your friends and family are watching, or someone’s texting you, or it’s on social media.
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