Major League Soccer and ABC today unveiled their broadcast schedule and on-air talent line-up for the 2005 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game. The on-air crew of JP Dellacamera, Eric Wynalda, Rob Stone and Brandi Chastain will call the summer classic, which marks its tenth year live on ABC Sports. The 2005 edition of the game will showcase some of world's best soccer players, as Landon Donovan (LA Galaxy), Carlos Ruiz (FC Dallas) and Clint Dempsey (New England Revolution) lead the MLS All-Stars against English Premier League team Fulham FC. Fulham is lead by former MLS All-Star Brian McBride who made his mark in Columbus during his MLS days. McBride, who was the first ever draft choice of MLS, is joined on Fulham by Carlos Bocanegra, also a former MLS All-Star while with the Chicago Fire.
COMMENTATORS:
Calling the game action for ABC Sports are television soccer veterans JP Dellacamera, who will handle play-by-play duties, and lead analyst Eric Wynalda, now in his third full season in broadcasting on the ABC/ESPN2 MLS game broadcasts. The broadcasting team also includes Women's World Cup champion and Olympic gold medal winner Brandi Chastain, one of the most recognizable women in sports, who is in her first full season as field analyst during the weekly MLS games. Veteran commentator Rob Stone will serve as the host from Columbus, Ohio.
Wynalda, who appeared in three World Cups, is the leading scorer in U.S. National Team history with 34 goals. Ironically, he also scored 34 goals in his MLS career as well as in college at San Diego State University; and in his senior season at Westlake Village High School in California. Chastain joined the U.S. Women's National Team since 1988, winning the 1991, 1999 FIFA Women's World Cups and the 1996 and 2004 Olympic gold medals.
PRODUCTION:
An 85-person crew will work the broadcast, which will be delivered by 18 cameras, including multiple super slo-mo replay machines, Jib and goal cameras which feed 12 digital replay tape sources. For the fourth consecutive season the ABC broadcast will be delivered in stereo with a mixture of bench, player, sideline and goalmouth microphones. The broadcast's audio mix will feature 27 "field-effects" microphones, four wireless mics and 64 other audio inputs. Additionally, players (TBD) will be wearing wireless microphones throughout the game. The players will wear a transmitter on his upper arm in neoprene pouch specially designed for MLS. They are the world's smallest waterproof, broadcast quality wireless belt-pack transmitter.
HISTORY:
This year, the MLS' midsummer showcase returns to an international match with MLS All-Stars vs. Fulham. 2003's edition of the MLS All-Star Game featured a single MLS All-Star team against Chivas, a Mexican club team at The Home Depot Center in Carson, California. The MLS stars won 3-1 with Carlos Ruiz of the Los Angeles Galaxy being named the game's MVP. Past All-Star formats have included a game featuring USA vs. World Stars (1998), and the US Men's national team vs. MLS Stars.
BOWLING FOR SOUP AT HALFTIME:
Texas-based rock band Bowling For Soup will highlight the 2005 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Halftime Show. Jive recording artists Bowling For Soup, who will be performing their hit "1985" during the All-Star halftime show, have become a mainstay on MTV2 and VH1 following the smashing success of their latest album A Hangover You Don't Deserve, which was recently certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. Known for their undeniably catchy pop hooks, their love of old-school metal, and comical interviews, the band scored a Grammy nomination in 2003 in the Best Performance Pop By a Duo or Group category for their power-pop sing-a-long "Girl All the Bad Guys Want."
MLS ALL STAR GAME IN SAP:
In addition, the MLS All-Star game is available in Spanish via SAP (Secondary Audio Programming) presented by ESPN Deportes with Randall Alvarez and Claudio Jijon providing the commentary.
