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Atlanta United is re-upping its regional television rights deal with FOX Sports South and FOX Sports Southeast, but more importantly for us, it means our buds Jillian Sakovits, Kevin Egan and Dan Gargan, will be back through 2022.
The news will be welcomed by most Five Stripes fans, as *Egan and Gargan have formed an enjoyable partnership in the broadcast booth alongside Sakovits on the field.
[*You don’t know how much the permanent change to bring in Egan pleased Dirty South Soccer.]
When reached by Dirty South Soccer, Kevin Egan indicated fans can expect to see more shenanigans among the three on when they’re in town together next season.
For the serious stuff:
Atlanta United President Darren Eales published this statement in a press release:
“FOX Sports South and Southeast have done a tremendous job broadcasting our matches since our inaugural season and we’re thrilled to continue our exclusive partnership going forward,” said Eales. “They’ve shown a commitment to produce the best local broadcast in MLS and that’s played a key role in cultivating our ever-growing fan base. Kevin, Dan and Jillian have done a superb job and we’re equally excited for each of them to join us again next year.”
The timing of the deal coincides with a report published in The Athletic by Paul Tenorio and Pablo Maurer that states:
The league has instructed its teams not to sign any local rights deals that run beyond the end of the current national agreement [2022], and industry insiders have speculated that the league is preparing to centralize all of its media rights, bringing “local” production in-house in order to give it a uniform feel and quality — an idea that appears in the Boston Consulting Group study.
Atlanta United will begin its competitive schedule in 2020 in Concacaf Champions League against FC Motagua. The Round of 16 is scheduled to open Feb. 18-20 with the return leg scheduled for Feb. 25-27. The club will then open its 2020 MLS schedule at Nashville SC on February 29 before hosting its home opener March 7 against FC Cincinnati.