As we highlighted last week, Florida fans are somewhat spoiled when it comes to access to watch games. With virtually every Gator game under the ESPN banner, versus the conglomerate of banners that nearly every other conference has to deal with, Florida fans don’t have to go hunting and pecking to find games.
And while ESPN’s broadcasts aren’t always perfect, and they are prone to gaffes and issues, Florida fans will take ESPN in a heartbeat compared to the looming threat of Netflix continuing to dip its toe into the live sports market.
Florida fans never want to see a game on Netflix
If you didn’t catch the Home Run Derby last night, the revamped format was a success, and the event felt like it had life in it that it hadn’t seen in years.
But the problem is that the event was broadcast on Netflix, and let’s just say MLB fans are hoping never to see Netflix broadcast another MLB event again. Everything felt like a product placement for other Netflix shows, their panel of analysts felt lifeless, and there was a weird attempt at comedy during player introductions.
And all of that could have been overlooked, but Netflix’s choice of camera angles looked like something you would expect watching a Big South game on ESPN+, not for an MLB event. It was really tough to tell whether someone had actually hit a home run off the bat because Netflix kept rotating its angles and was often way too close to the batter to tell what was going on.
Now, you might be wondering how this impacts the Gators, and as it stands, it doesn’t. And given that the SEC currently has a ten-year deal with ESPN and ABC that is only in its third year, it would be a long time before one has to worry about Netflix.
But as the streaming giant continues to dip its toe into the sports world, we wouldn’t be shocked to see it make a big move at a power conference down the road. If they do, they will need to step their game up because the problems with last night’s Home Run Derby weren’t in a vacuum. Netflix has had issues in the past with boxing showcases, such as the Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul fight, and has been criticized for its NFL games that it has broadcast.
So just remember, anytime you think ESPN could do better when broadcasting a Gator game, it could also be way worse.
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