Derek Rae

Really enjoying being reconnected with ball-by-ball cricket on the radio during this Ashes series.
And the Aussie coverage is very enjoyable.

Yes it’s true. But 2am is a different proposition for say Sco fans against Haiti on 13 June. No coffee and pastry upside there :)
However can’t move every game to suit European TV viewers.

An area where those of us from Europe should be quiet is re “ridiculous” kick off times.
The World Cup is not in Europe so we have no right to expect privileges.
The Americas & Asia are normally disadvantaged.
Can’t be critical of a 9pm ET/2am UK KO when it means cooler conditions & better ⚽️

Urs Fischer is back in the Bundesliga as coach of bottom of the table Mainz. #M05

Catching up with yesterday.
Big improvements in Aberdeen’s play already visible & can see elements of Lutz’s handwriting.
There’s a reason why an experienced sporting director is so key in German ⚽️ on all levels.

In short….no

OK, so some things work out perfectly :))

🙏

Bye bye.

If you think that, totally up to you.

Haha…KA-EE EH-ra in English sounds :)

I also did the press officer job for FIFA in Korea in 2002. All other years have been as a commentator 🎙️ & while I have no idea if I‘ll be given any Scotland games among my assignments on US TV, the thought of 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 in Boston is making me giddy with excitement today :)

This will be my 10th World Cup in a working capacity.
What you won’t know is, my 2nd one in 94 was as the press officer for the Boston venue in the years leading up to & during it.
Have a strong feeling my country 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 is coming to Boston to face Haiti on 13 June. We’ll know soon

100%…2 of my faves too

If any Scots are looking at Boston as a World Cup base, strongly recommend the North Shore - great towns on the coast & with a car hire, an hour & a bit from the stadium without traffic.
Beaches, restaurants, lobster in the best weather of the year.
Salem, Beverly, Gloucester, even up to Rockport.

So a pretty good chance Boston will be welcoming Scotland!
We’ll know for sure tomorrow.

Agreed

Sometimes just don’t whether to laugh or cry!

Is this the year when Americans finally find out who Robbie Williams is? :)
The number of times I have mentioned his name to USA people in the last 25 years only to get a…..do you mean ROBIN Williams?

Have been listening to the Ashes from afar on SEN Radio Aus.
Credit to them. Their broadcasting style might be far away from my own - & the Benaud style - but they do it very well & capture the excitement.

»KI-Ära« ist das Wort des Jahres 2025 Nach »Ampel-Aus« im vergangenen Jahr ist »KI-Ära« das Wort des Jahres 2025 geworden. Die Begründung: KI sei aus dem Elfenbeinturm der wissenschaftlichen Forschung herausgetreten und habe die Mitte der...

The German word of the year for 2025 as decided by the Gesellschaft für deutsche Sprache jury is officially “KI-Ära“ (AI era).
In second place came “Deal.”
www.spiegel.de/kultur/ki-ae...

That’s why I said relatively :)
It’s never going to be easy compared to Germany for the EM :)

For those who want easy (all relative in North America) travel, you want Group B with CAN, or D with USA.
C is good with first 2 in the BOS-NY/NJ/Philly corridor. I is even better if you got say Boston-Philly-Boston or Boston-NY/NJ-Boston.
More in a few hours.

If Scotland land in Group B, they’ll be with Canada and would open in San Francisco against a Pot 2 side.
Middle game against Canada in Vancouver.
Third game against a Pot 4 side in Seattle. This is again guaranteed due to the co-hosts paths already mapped out.

If Scotland land in Group D, they’ll be with the USA in their opening fixture in the group in LA.
Next 2 matches guaranteed to be in San Francisco.

Worked out a couple of World Cup draw sure things from a Scottish angle.
If Sco land in Pot A, it is already predetermined they will play Mexico at Azteca in Mexico City in the official opener.
Then they would be guaranteed to go to Atlanta & Monterrey in that order for their next games.

The Thursday edition of Kicker reflects on all the DFB-Pokal excitement of the last 2 nights.
“Via Berlin….to Berlin.”
“3:2 at Union. Bayern aiming for its first Pokal final since 2020.”

I‘m sure you enjoyed it too!

Busy commentary week so just 1 for the world feed 🎙️ this weekend.
It’s the Saturday Topspiel in Leipzig with Eintracht Frankfurt the visitors to the Messestadt.
18:20 CET/17:20 UK (normally Sky somewhere)/12:20 ET (ESPN+ USA)
Owo with me for expert analysis.

Rebecca Lowe joining Fox's World Cup coverage as host: Sources

⚽️ NEWS: NBC's Rebecca Lowe will join Fox Sports as a host for the World Cup, The Athletic has learned.

Full details ...

www.nytimes.com/athletic/685...