World Cup Soccer Broadcast in High Definition on DISH Network
Soccer – football to many around the world – is hands down the most popular sport on the planet. The 2006 World Cup broadcast from Germany was the most extensively broadcasted sporting event in history. 376 channels around the world aired the games, compared to only 232 back in 2002. That was a total of 43,600 broadcasts across 214 countries and territories. If that's not impressive enough, in 2006 it is estimated that a cumulative total of 24.2 billion people watched the games, including 2.1 billion tuned in to the final match that saw Italy beat France on penalty kicks after playing to a 1-1 tie in regulation.
What's amazing about all of this is the 2010 World Cup from South Africa is expected to beat all of these numbers, and depending on the two teams in the final match could set an all-time record for the most people simultaneously watching a sporting event around the globe. Talk about finding some common ground!
Soccer's popularity is no real surprise. When you boil it right down to the heart of the matter, the only thing required to play soccer is a ball and some willing participants. It can be played in a street with garbage cans set up as goals, or on a playground, or in a dirt field, or literally anywhere with a flat surface conducive to the sport. I've even seen people playing soccer inside warehouses, in airplane hangars, and on the roofs of buildings.
No expensive shoes, or pads, and helmets. A ball, and it doesn't even have to be a regulation soccer ball. I've seen soccer played with kick balls, volleyballs, tether balls, homemade balls made from tape and plastic bags, etc. Everything else can be improvised because in its purest form, soccer comes down to the guy with the ball trying to get it past the goalie. That's a concept that can be unfurled on just about any surface.
The games in South Africa get underway Friday when the host country opens against Mexico. Later that day Uruguay will host France. The United States will get underway on Saturday when they host world powerhouse England.
You can catch all the exciting matches on DISH Network, which is incredible considering the recent developments at DISH Network. Oh? You haven't heard? Check this out. DISH Network unveiled FREE HD for Life last week, which means you can get as many as 120 free high definition channels from the HD leader! This includes all of the World Cup soccer matches from South Africa!
Get the biggest bang for your buck with DISH Network packages, where you can now get free high definition programming for life. I don't know about you, but to me that sounds like they just score a GOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLLL!
