Shauna GM
@shauna@social.coop  ·  activity timestamp yesterday

WSL kicks off this weekend (Women's Super League - the English league, probably the second best women's soccer league globally) and the streams so far have been unwatchable at times. This used to be a constant issue in the but is much less common now (still annoying when it happens tho!)

When people say "people don't watch women's sports because it's less entertaining" I want to point them to things like this. So many more things affect one's enjoyment of a match than the quality of play.
stephaniepixie 🏳️‍🌈
@stephaniepixie@fandom.garden replied  ·  activity timestamp yesterday
@shauna The streaming quality is probably the top reason women’s matches are unwatchable - not the game itself.
Either not available at all locally, or the league is on 5 different streaming services and the match happens to be on the one we don’t have because we can’t afford them all, or the camera work looks so amateurish it’s cringy.
Eric Schwarz :yikes:
@ecschwarz@mastodon.social replied  ·  activity timestamp yesterday
@shauna I’m lazy and often don’t get up that early on the weekends, but didn’t ESPN scoop up the rights? I feel like that was a “oh, I guess people do like woso and we can’t have the entire NWSL” move.

Did you watch WSL back when it was entirely on FA Player? I have some fond memories watching games on the balcony of my old apartment and haven’t had a chance to check in lately.

(Also, your point is so correct - NWSL has its moments still, WNBA has it for a handful of local broadcasts, too.)
Eric Schwarz :yikes:
@ecschwarz@mastodon.social replied  ·  activity timestamp yesterday
@shauna Ugh, not sure if you do much on TikTok, but saw this post right before yours on here and it resonated so much: https://www.tiktok.com/@caseysonthecase/video/7546342279783484727

It also kind of reminds me how for many sports, ESPN seems to want to make their own logo/branding instead of using that of the leagues themselves.