FOX Sports today unveils the announcers and analysts covering the complete 2014 FIFA Women’s World Cup CONCACAF Qualifying Tournament across the FOX Sports family of networks beginning Wednesday, Oct. 15. For the first time ever, all 16 tournament matches are televised, with coverage provided by FOX Sports 1, FOX Sports 2, FOX Soccer Plus, FOX Sports GO and FOX Soccer 2Go. The announcement was made today by FIFA World Cup on FOX Executive Producer David Neal.
“The group we’ve assembled for the 2014 CONCACAF Women’s Championship is an exciting mix of veterans and newcomers who we’re sure will blend together nicely, providing soccer fans the insight and coverage they clearly expect,” said Neal. “We’re committed to providing a level of coverage this tournament has never seen, and we’ve set a terrific foundation.”
FOX Sports’ game analysts include numerous U.S. Women’s National Team veterans. Cat Whitehill is a 10-year veteran defender and current player-coach for the Boston Breakers in the National Women’s Soccer League, while midfielder Angela Hucles played on the USWNT for seven years, including two FIFA Women’s World Cups. Defender Danielle Slaton spent five years with the national squad before moving on to play for Olympique Lyonnais, where she was a starting defender on the French First Division team. Tony DiCicco, best known as head coach of the USWNT that won the legendary 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup, adds a coach’s perspective. Completing the team are former University of Minnesota soccer star Kyndra de St. Aubin, who has covered women’s soccer for the Big Ten Network and Pac-12 Networks, and former Canadian Women’s National Team striker Christine Latham.
Jenny Taft, a FOX Sports 1 reporter and update anchor and a former Division I college athlete, is assigned exclusively to coverage of the USWNT for the duration of the tournament. Taft is embedded with the USWNT throughout the 12-day tournament, providing an in-depth look, news updates and features from the inside. Her reports also appear daily on FOX Sports 1 studio shows AMERICA’S PREGAME and FOX SPORTS LIVE.
Calling play-by-play throughout the tournament are John Strong, JP Dellacamera, Mark Rogondino, Justin Kutcher, Jenn Hildreth and Mark Followill who have all called the game at the international, professional or collegiate levels. Each play-by-play announcer is paired with various analysts throughout the tournament.
Before every USWNT match, coverage on FOX Sports 1 or FOX Sports 2 kicks off with a 30-minute pregame show live from Los Angeles with host Rob Stone alongside a rotation of expert analysts. Included in that group are U.S. Soccer Hall of Famer Eric Wynalda, former USWNT stars Leslie Osborne and Heather Mitts, as well as former Mexican Women’s National Team defender Monica Gonzalez. Julie Stewart-Binks also hosts pregame coverage for select matches. FOX Sports soccer insider and Sports Illustrated senior columnist Grant Wahl serves as a tournament correspondent, and longtime FIFA and Match Commissioner Dr. Joe Machnik provides insight and opinion as it pertains to officiating.
The CONCACAF Women’s World Cup Qualifying journey begins on Wednesday, Oct. 15 with a doubleheader live from Kansas City’s Sporting Park on FOX Sports 2 as Guatemala takes on Haiti at 6:00 PM ET, followed at 8:00 PM ET by the USWNT opener against Trinidad and Tobago, also live on FOX Sports 2. All games stream live on FOX Sports GO and FOX Soccer 2Go.
Group Stage and Playoffs
(All times ET; schedule subject to change)
Date Time Show/Match Announce Team Network
Oct. 15 6:00 PM Guatemala – Haiti Dellacamera/Hucles FOX Sports 2 8:00 PM Pregame Stone/Mitts/Wynalda FOX Sports 1 8:30 PM USA-Trinidad Strong/Whitehill/Taft FOX Sports 2
Oct. 16 6:00 PM Jamaica-Martinique Followill/de St. Aubin FOX Sports 2 8:30 PM Costa Rica-Mexico Kutcher/Slaton FOX Soccer Plus
Oct. 17 6:30 PM Haiti-Trinidad Hildreth/de St. Aubin FOX Sports 2 8:30 PM Pregame Stone/Mitts/Osborne/ FOX Sports 1 Wynalda 9:00 PM USA-Guatemala Dellacamera/Whitehill/ FOX Sports 1 Taft
Oct. 18 4:00 PM Costa Rica-Jamaica Hildreth/Slaton FOX Sports 2 6:30 PM Martinique-Mexico Rogondino/Whitehill FOX Sports 2
Oct. 20 5:00 PM Trinidad-Guatemala Rogondino/Latham FOX Sports 2 7:00 PM Pregame Stone/Mitts/Osborne/ FOX Sports 1 Wynalda 7:30 PM Haiti-USA Strong/DiCicco/Taft FOX Sports 1
Oct. 21 5:00 PM Martinique-Costa Rica Dellacamera/Hucles FOX Sports 2 7:30 PM Mexico-Jamaica Kutcher/Whitehill FOX Sports 1
Oct. 24 4:30 PM Semifinal 1 Rogondino/DiCicco FOX Sports 2 7:00 PM Pregame Stewart-Binks/Mitts/ FOX Sports 1 Osborne/Wynalda 7:30 PM Semifinal 2 Kutcher/Whitehill/Taft FOX Sports 1
Oct. 26 3:00 PM Third-Place Match Hildreth/DiCicco FOX Sports 1 5:00 PM Final Strong/Whitehill/Taft FOX Sports 1
*Update: Due to scheduling conflicts, Costa Rica-Mexico has been moved from FOX Sports 2 to FOX Soccer Plus.