Versus Gets Rugby World Cup

By Michael Malone
( Broadcasting & Cable )
published

The sports channel Versus will air several matches of the 2007 Rugby World Cup in the coming weeks.

Argentina’s match against host France kicks off the Versus coverage Sept. 9, two days after the event happens live. The following day, Versus shows the U.S. “Eagles” squad take on heavily favored England. Then it’s the U.S. against Tonga (Sept. 13), Samoa (Sept. 27) and South Africa (Oct. 1). All are on tape delay.

Versus will also air marquee matchups such as England vs. South Africa (Sept. 16) and France vs. Ireland (Sept. 23), along with the Cup quarterfinals, semifinals and final.

The largely amateur American squad, ranked No. 13 in the world, hopes to keep heavyweights England and South Africa from running up the score, while aiming to take down relative peers such as Tonga and Samoa.

Most pundits pick New Zealand to go home with the Cup.

Michael Malone
Michael Malone

Michael Malone, senior content producer at B+C/Multichannel News, covers network programming, including entertainment, news and sports on broadcast, cable and streaming; and local broadcast television. He hosts the podcasts Busted Pilot, about what’s new in television, and Series Business, a chat with the creator of a new program, and writes the column “The Watchman.” He joined B+C in 2005. His journalism has also appeared in The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Playboy and New York magazine.