Women make World Cup television history in the US UK Germany

Foxs Aly Wagner (pictured) and Telemundos Viviana Vila are the first in-match analysts on U.S. broadcast television for soccers showcase, the FIFA World Cup. B

ZDF sport director Thomas Fuhrmann estimated 10-20 percent of the audience was not accepting of a woman, a segment he said wants to watch the soccer game and drink beer, and to make it the perfect cliche, eat the bratwurst and listen to a mans voice. Its completely irrational.

Foxs Aly Wagner and Telemundos Viviana Vila are the first in-match analysts on U.S. television for soccers showcase. BBCs Vicki Sparks is making a similar breakthrough in Britain and ZDFs Claudia Neumann in Germany.

It wasnt that I set out to end up calling a mens World Cup match, but my path has led me here now and Ill be extremely proud doing it, Wagner said. Hopefully I can prove its about my effort and my work and my passion and my commitment and my love for the game that comes through when I call the match as opposed to it having anything to do with being the first female.

Still, she has some trepidation about expanding beyond soccer.

After calling college basketball on ESPN for more than a decade, Doris Burke became the networks regularNBAgame analyst this season. Stephanie Ready became the NBAs first woman club broadcast game analyst with theCharlotte Hornetsin 2015-16, and Sarah Kustock moved up from court-side reporter to game analyst onBrooklyn Netsbroadcasts last season.

Colombian fans live and die with every pass and every shot when watching their beloved national team. La Seleccin is not only the epitome of the nations love for soccer but a symbol of national pride. Hear from Colombian fans as they explain the emotional nature of their fandom.

Chicago Fire coach Veljko Paunovic spoke about the Fires state of affairs ahead of Saturdays home game against New York City FC, including what the team needs to do in the second half of the season, the upcoming transfer window and the latest injury updates (Courtesy of Chicago Fire).

Gayle Gardner became the first woman to callMajor League Baseballplay-by-play when she subbed on a Colorado broadcast of aRockiesagainst Cincinnati in 1993. Suzyn Waldman has been the color commentator on New York Yankees radio since 2005, and Jenny Cavnar has filled in on Rockies radio this year. Jessica Mendoza has been anESPNMLB analyst since 2015.

Wagner, a national team midfielder from 1998-2008, was a game analyst for Fox at the 2015 Womens World Cup and called 10 of Foxs 48 group-stage telecasts this year from the networks Los Angeles studios, paired with Scottish broadcaster Derek Rae.

There was a lot resistance at the start. Some responded positively, she said. But I needed to work harder … to gain credibility.

Vila covered news and sports on radio and got a break when a game analyst failed to show for a match and noted Argentine play-by-play man Vctor Hugo Morales asked her to fill in. She impressed and earned more broadcasts.

Paul Nicholls, Terrys agent, did not respond to an email about his clients Instagram posts.

Foxs Aly Wagner (pictured) and Telemundos Viviana Vila are the first in-match analysts on U.S. broadcast television for soccers showcase, the FIFA World Cup. B (Mark Lennihan / AP)

Mexico fans in Chicago celebrate El Tris second win in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, putting them closer to reaching the elusive quinto partido ahead of Wendesdays crucial match against Sweden.

Mexican players Carlos Vela and the dos Santos brothers, Jonathan and Giovani, headline the list of 19 MLS players headed to the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. Costa Rica and Panama feature the most MLS players with six each.

Neumann, who has worked for ZDF since 1999, broadcast at the 2011 Womens World Cup. She was a target of social media criticism when she commented on matches during the 2016 European Championship and again this year.

Soccer has been an essential part of Spanish culture, passed down multiple generations and spread around the world wherever a Spaniard goes. Hear from Spanish fans as they explain the unbreakable bond between the country and the sport.

Kyndra de St. Aubin is the color analyst for Minnesotas local Major League Soccer telecasts

While they get a lot of attention, these haters, as we call them in Germany, I think its a more general issue of our society, Fuhrmann said. Its not only sports. Its more that something is changing.

The mens World Cup is notable for women.

You can very quickly undo a lot of work and a good reputation if as a woman you position yourself at the front of a sports coverage and you arent as a good as another man, she said. I think you need to be as good as if not better than any man in your field just to be able to earn that right to be there.

Women make World Cup television history in the US, UK, Germany

A lot of the TV executives and particularly Fox have definitely put themselves in the forefront at making sure they give women a strong voice in soccer. Perhaps in the U.S. that female voice has been seen as more credible and hasnt had to fight for the credibility quite the same way because the womans game has an elevated status in comparison to what it has in Europe.

Soccer is deeply entrenched in the fabric of Mexican culture, but the passion for the sport and the national team is not limited by borders. Hear from El Tri fans as they explain the dichotomous nature of being a Mexico fan.

Colombian fans live and die with every pass and every shot when watching their beloved national team. La Seleccin is not only the epitome of the nations love for soccer but a symbol of national pride. Hear from Colombian fans as they explain the emotional nature of their fandom.

Colombian fans live and die with every pass and every shot when watching their beloved national team. La Seleccin is not only the epitome of the nations love for soccer but a symbol of national pride. Hear from Colombian fans as they explain the emotional nature of their fandom.

AJ Mleczko has announced hockey for NBC at Olympics since 2006 and started on its NHL broadcasts in March. Cassie Campbell calls game for Sportsnet in Canada and is the first woman color commentator on CBCs Hockey Night in Canada.

AP Sports Writer Eric Nunez contributed to this report.

Colombian fans live and die with every pass and every shot when watching their beloved national team. La Seleccin is not only the epitome of the nations love for soccer but a symbol of national pride. Hear from Colombian fans as they explain the emotional nature of their fandom.

Women traditionally have kind of been accepted into their hosting role, whether or not they were the strongest candidate, because for a long period of time there was just simply the idea that it was enough to look good on television. It didnt necessarily imply somebody being an expert, said Kate Abdo, Foxs start-of-the-day studio show anchor in Red Square. For women to break into that domain, which traditionally has been very, very male, has been more difficult.

Chicago Fire coach Veljko Paunovic spoke about the Fires state of affairs ahead of Saturdays home game against New York City FC, including what the team needs to do in the second half of the season, the upcoming transfer window and the latest injury updates (Courtesy of Chicago Fire).

Abdo thinks the U.S. audience may be more accepting of women.

No matter the interpretation, it is clear women have had a difficult path gaining roles in sports broadcasts beyond studio hosts and sideline reporters. Play-by-play and color jobs remain nearly universally the domain of men.

Soccer has been an essential part of Spanish culture, passed down multiple generations and spread around the world wherever a Spaniard goes. Hear from Spanish fans as they explain the unbreakable bond between the country and the sport.

It took me 10 years. It was very disappointing that it took so much time, Vila said of her advance. It truly was draining, unfair and ungrateful. It shouldnt be that way. But it made me stronger, to keep learning and improving in my work. Im better now to face whatever comes my way.

Mexico fans in Chicago celebrate El Tris second win in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, putting them closer to reaching the elusive quinto partido ahead of Wendesdays crucial match against Sweden.

In perhaps the biggest breakthrough, Beth Mowins last season became the first woman to regularly call play-by-play in the NFL, working for ESPN and CBS. Gayle Sierens had worked a game for NBC in 1987.

Soccer is deeply entrenched in the fabric of Mexican culture, but the passion for the sport and the national team is not limited by borders. Hear from El Tri fans as they explain the dichotomous nature of being a Mexico fan.

Former England captain John Terry caused a flap during Sparks call of the Portugal-Morocco game when he posted a video of a TV screen to Instagram and added the words: Having to watch this game with no volume. Terry deleted the post and wrote he meant there was no audio in his house when he returned from the Maldives.

That may have been the last barrier to break, Mowins said. I think more and more people are accustomed now to women in the booth. I think theres a younger generation, thats all they know is their mothers played sports and their sisters and their girlfriends all played sports. And now their daughters want to play sports, too, and are sports consumers and fans and viewers.