English announcer Martin Tyler, who will head ESPN’s coverage of the World Cup as its lead play-by-play man, is familiar with American sports and Americansports coverage on television, dating back the 1984 Olympics when he produced the world feed for the soccer coverage of the Los Angeles Olympics.
He was on hand for one of the most famousblunders in American sports history. “I was standing behind the curtain when Bill Buckner let the ball through his legs. I was going to run on and interview himfor English TV,” said Tyler of the error by the Boston first baseman that cost the Red Sox Game 6 of the 1986 World Series.
Tyler acknowledges the difference in how soccer and baseballare covered. “I’m a big fan of Vin Scully and I think his anecdotal stuff is sensational,” Tyler said. “But you know, I think baseball people accept if a fewpitches go flying in and the ball is up on a screen. He can just break up the story and say `2 and 1′ or something like that. And everyone knows, you can’t really do that in football.”