Long stretches in WC have caused problems for TV4.
The channel was forced into crisis meetings on how to handle the situation.
– The 17.00 matches are the most problematic, the 19.00 news may be moved forward and shortened, says TV4 sports director Eric Westberg.
FIFA has directed referees to exercise extra caution going into extra time due to masks and injuries.
TV4 had anticipated longer matches, but they weren’t as extreme as they are now.
It has become difficult for TV channels, they have found it difficult to operate when match times vary so much.
– We have to be flexible and dodge all the time because you never know how long matches will last. What we do know is that there is still a lot of extra work to do, Eric Westberg says.
Sports broadcast has been removed
TV4 debated whether viewers should be directed to watch newscasts on the streaming service or Seven.
– The first step is that we will not change the board. The big challenge is the matches starting at 17:00, as it started to get delayed past 19:00 when it was news time. We have to reduce the time in our live broadcasts. News had to be cut short and then air sports after the news has been canceled twice now, says Eric Westberg.
Trailers do not fit
There are also issues with other match times and other types of software are affected.
– The washroom will be private because it is at peak time during the winter season. November and December are very important for us at TV4 in terms of schedule. There will also be less time in the studio after matches and talking about the next matches. Then we have trailers that we can lift. Viewers can still watch live football, and it’s basically sure that it really should be football when the clock is ticking and throwing away other things, says Eric Westberg.
Easier for SVT
According to expert Jonas Ericsson at SVT, the extra long times are something we will have to get used to in the future.
– This is the challenge in traditional linear tabloid television. Then we move more and more to the digital view of everything. Eric Westberg says the problem is not the same with the digitizer.
SVT did not face the same challenges with overtime greatly increasing the number of matches.
– We have a lot of time live after the matches, so we didn’t have to change anything in the scoreboards. On the other hand, the broadcast schedule needs to be adjusted when matches get longer, says Max Purcell, SVT Sport’s acting program director.
TV4 and SVT share broadcasts from WC in Qatar.