FOX looks like they’ll go all-American with their top broadcast team for next summer’s World Cup, according to a report from The Associated Press.
The AP reported on Thursday that FOX will likely pair longtime MLS play-by-play man John Strong with US soccer legend Landon Donovan and former US national team midfielder Stuart Holden in the booth in Russia next summer. The trio will reportedly call Thursday’s World Cup qualifier between the US and Trinidad and Tobago at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park (8 pm ET | FS1, UniMas, UDN), while Strong and Holden will also do Sunday’s qualifier at Mexico.
“Soccer in our country is at a point now where I think we’re ready to do that, and we have announcers and talent that are capable of bringing educated options,” Holden told The AP. “I think it’s time. I think it’s time that we embrace the American voices.”
Strong and Holden will also be the primary announcers for the upcoming Confederations Cup in Russia. Donovan will not attend the tournament while awaiting the birth of his second child.
David Neal, executive producer of FOX’s World Cup coverage, said that the team isn’t fully locked in for the World Cup, but indicated that the aforementioned trio are the current leaders to be the network’s top broadcast team in Russia.
“At the moment, that’s where we’re looking. Obviously, we’ve got 13 months before [we] have to lock it in,” Neal told The AP. “Stu is effervescent, and Landon is probably a little more laconic. It really is a perfect pair of personalities that can help each other.”
For more on FOX’s coverage plans for the Confederations Cup, click here.
