QATAR, Nov 17: The World Cup will sound different this year.
Jacqui Oatley will become the first woman play-by-play commentator for U.S. World Cup telecasts, heading one of Fox’s five broadcast teams for the tournament in Qatar that opens Sunday.
Pien Meulensteen, Vicki Sparks and Robyn Cowen are among the broadcasters for matches on BBC in Britain.
“Loads of people will have negative comments about women and women commentators and that’s because that’s just the way that they think. They’re not open to hearing anything different,” said Meulensteen, the 25-year-old daughter of former Fulham manager and current Australia assistant coach René Meulensteen.
“I’ve loved football since I was a kid. I grew up in a footballing house, My dad works in football. My two brothers play football, and we all talk about the same thing, so why not have a female talking about it?” Pien Meulensteen said. “And I’m hoping in time, as well, that we’ll just be accepted. It won’t be seen as like, ‘oh, wow, there’s a woman that’s doing commentary.’ This should be a normal thing to have females talking about football, just as much as men.”
Oatley, 47, worked the 2018 World Cup for Britain’s ITV as a studio presenter and sideline reporter. She and Meulensteen have become regulars on the Premier League’s world feed, heard in the U.S. on NBC’s networks.
FIFA is also using color commentators for the first time on its English-language world feed. Its six crews include San Diego Wave coach Casey Stoney and Lucy Ward, both former England players. (AP)
