ESPN broadcaster Karl Ravech stirred up the rivalry between his network and Fox Sports while broadcasting a Little League World Series game on Friday.
Ravech paused to promote ESPN’s coverage of an upcoming Bundesliga soccer game on Saturday, and he took a shot at rival Fox in the process. Ravech went to great pains to point out that the kickoff time for the game was 12:30 p.m.
“We want to make sure we’re upfront and honest and transparent. The kickoff is at 12:30 on ABC, ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes,” Ravech said.
There is no way this was not intentional. Fox faced criticism during its coverage of the FIFA Women’s World Cup over misleading viewers over the nature of its coverage. The network often did not differentiate between its pregame show and the match itself, often naming the time for the start of its coverage two hours before the match itself without clarifying that they were promoting their pregame show.
Fox and ESPN coexist as necessary, but there is definitely a rivalry between the two networks. ESPN can have some fun with the fact that at least one high-profile member of the Fox family just moved to Bristol this week, too.
More must-reads: