Can the Premier League benefit from the excitement over this year's World Cup?

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1:09Welcome to the Sports Media Podcast. I'm your host, Richard Deitch. My producer is James Jackson, one guest on this episode. But if you are a Premier League fan in the United States, this gentleman, probably the most important person regarding how your coverage looks and how the coverage is. Pierre Moussa is a coordinating producer for NBC Sports' coverage of the Premier League. He's also a director on NBC's NBA coverage and will work, I believe he's directing this, all of the Netflix NFL games, including the Niners-Rams game in Melbourne on September 11th, Pierre will also direct, select Sunday Night Football, NBC games such as the Mexico City game.

1:55That's Niners, Vikings, Wild Card, etc. Obviously a very, very important person at NBC Sports. I've been wanting to talk about the Premier League as it heads back now in terms of starting its season. And with that, I bring in Pierre Moussa. Welcome. Thank you for having me. I really appreciate the time. You got it. As I told you before we started, we're taping this very early in the morning. So you're going to have to carry this podcast here. I know it's a lot of pressure on you, but pretend your talent for this one. All right. So let's start very broadly. What are you looking forward to most about this year's Premier League coverage?

2:30Well, I really think right now is probably one of the most special times in the history of soccer coverage, football coverage, United States. There's no doubt the World Cup had an incredible impact on this country. I know there's a lot of people who are incredibly passionate football soccer fans, and they've been that for a long time. But the World Cup really did help create broad awareness. I'll give you a simple example. My daughter was turning six years old, and we had a birthday party at our house. And it happened to be the England quarterfinal game of the World Cup. And I told my wife, I said, listen, I'll do anything you want for the birthday party.

3:07But when England plays, I just want to watch the match. And we had about 40 people over. and I watched a bunch of people who had never watched a soccer game before fall in love with it and the amount of people who had been watching all non-stop and really sort of soccer curious so going back to my statement about this being probably one of the most special times is there's a lot of people who are really interested in catching the soccer fever and it's our responsibility to help them really appreciate what makes the sport so special and when it comes to one of the most special parts of the sport.

3:40The Premier League is by far and away the most compelling league in the world. And really, really, our job is to help people appreciate what makes it so special. And right now, we have a real opportunity to quite candidly affect fans for generations to come. And what I mean by that is you have a bunch of kids who are now seeing soccer, seeing football, watching it, enjoying it. And soon there'll be college age kids. I'm doing with their college age mates. and the college age kids who are doing right now will soon be starting families doing with their kids. So it's a really incredible time to really help people appreciate what makes this so special.

4:15And the Premier League is by far and away the most special league in the world. Okay. So I hope that happens. You know, there, there, I am a little skeptical because I, you know, it's, I haven't yet seen, um, the world cup really, really expand mass interest in the United States, but we also have not had a domestic world cup. So things have changed. So let me ask you a question based on what you said. For instance, Erling Haaland is somebody who really captured the American public. He was amazing on social media. Obviously, Norway went on a pretty good run in the World Cup. So when you're thinking in terms of as the producer of NBC's Premier League coverage, will you try to highlight someone like him much more this year?

4:59I know he's a great player regardless, because it was very clear that the American public was really into him during the World Cup? I mean, we're going to celebrate every single star there is in the Premier League, but what we have to do is help people appreciate what makes the Premier League so special. And ultimately, you know, let's take one step back. So ultimately, when we were trying to get people to fall in love with soccer, fall in love with football, we sat around, we said, hey, you know what would make people really appreciate is if you got to experience it in person. But you take every single American and go over to England, and it doesn't matter what ground it is, and then experience it in person, they will automatically fall in love and when you friend you experience that one match it is such a special experience now you take that to the world cup and people in the united states got to experience that in person and so i'll be the first one to tell you going to the world cup i was very skeptical of whether it's gonna have impact or not being completely candid you know there's political reasons the tickets are very expensive when americans really hey there's always that sort of soccer haters out there.

6:03They're going to be out there. But what I found truly amazing, it's only anecdotal, is that the amount of people that I was stunned would come up and say, hey, you know, let me ask this question. Let me ask that. Hey, what explained this to me that we're really soccer curious. So anecdotally, the people that I would be stunned would be interested in have really found a curiosity. Going back to your original question, our job is, yes, to celebrate all the stars. And Erlen Holland's a massive star. And he's somebody who's by far in a way an incredible striker but there's tons of people that are incredible players in the Premier League they're top top competition but going back to what helps you fall in love with a club or fall in love with following a sports team it is it could be a star player it could be experiencing that first match it could because you like the color red it could because you're from Boston doesn't matter what it is our job and again we now take the the opportunity from the World Cup and now it's on upon us and that goes across all people broadcasting soccer and football to help them really appreciate what makes it so special.

7:03And so in turn, we will make sure we find relatability and make it anecdotally relatable to people as they try and find their clubs. We, we talked for an SBJ piece that I did on Rebecca Lowe in January. And one of the things that I imagine in your position, that must be just so gratifying is that your studio show, has been recognized as one of the great sports studio shows that exist. People talk about your show among Inside the NBA, College Game Day. I think the soccer show on Paramount is excellent as well. They're all different shows. They're obviously different sports. But you're in that, whatever that class is, you're in that class.

7:48My thought, obviously, is that you have excellent talent. And obviously, I'm a very, very big fan of Rebecca. But the other thing, Pierre, is that Rebecca, Robbie Uro, Robbie Musto, and Tim Howard are now in their fourth consecutive year together. And if you're in, if you have a studio show where there's continuity and it's engaging, people like each other and the audience likes it, you sort of have everything. So that was my long filibuster to ask you, why do you think this works? And do you feel like it can get better or are you just trying to maintain like the stability of a show that people like already?

8:21We're always trying to get better. And to be even mentioned in the, amongst all those other shows is a tremendous compliment, but we're really focused on our show and what we can do. I think you have to take a step back in this day and age, there's so many different platforms and mediums and shows and everything else that people can choose. They have a million choices. So you're asking people to choose to have you in their home. And in addition, you're asking people to choose you to have you in your home early mornings on weekends, which is traditionally family time. And what that means is you don't normally have guests over at seven in the morning during breakfast time.

9:00You don't normally have guests over with your family all the time. So our honored talent led by Rebecca Lowe and Tim have to be people you want to have in your home and they have to be likable and relatable and enjoyable to be around. And, you know, I'll take it one step further. And we have an incredible commentary team with Peter Drury and John Champion and Lee Dixon Graham Lasseau. And they have to be people you want to listen to and enjoy listening to. And in this day and age with everything going on, I don't think very few people sit down and just watch a show where they have a phone on, they have their kids, you know, all stuff's going on.

9:34So a lot of times our broadcasts are in the background as people are going on, but our announcers, whether it's John or Peter, draw you back to watching this going on. They provide excitement. They provide the soundtrack for ultimately your weekend mornings. So when it comes back to what we're trying to do, we're trying to provide a very welcoming and inclusive environment that helps people really enjoy it. And the second thing is to get up early in the morning. And you mentioned you're not a morning person. A lot of people to get up early in the morning, you know, you won't have to really be passionate about what you're doing.

10:02You have to be passionate about what you're broadcasting and you have to really love the sport and love the Premier League and honor talent really do love it. And that, that passion comes through the TV. It's infectious. In addition, they generally love being together. They generally love chatting. And ultimately, the viewer is sort of an extra person. That conversation is just eavesdropping that conversation. And ultimately, that experience is what we're trying to provide is somebody to help really a bunch of people who love football, love soccer, who love the Premier League, just chatting a little footy on weekend mornings together as a bunch of mates.

10:34And that team, and I'm a big believer is when you have chemistry and camaraderie and a passion together, you don't want to mess that up. I mean, honestly, our responsibility is to capture that in a bottle and keep continuing to make sure people appreciate it. And taking one step further, as we start our production meetings, everybody's talking about what's new and what's next, what are we trying to do? We actually went back and said, hey, when we started this 13 seasons ago, what was our philosophy? How do we approach it? What do we do to help people? Because right now we're going to have a whole influx of new people sampling for the first time and we know that every moment or show must count because you don't know when people are sampling and hook them and ultimately go back to those principles of being welcoming being inclusive making sure you're as authentic as you can be making sure you're intelligent and thoughtful in what you're doing you're going to be live and newsy yes holland may be the star but guess what happened over here we're going to cover all 20 teams we're going to make sure everybody really helps appreciate that and also there's a big curiosity of england and the football experience So, hey, we're going to bridge that geographical gap.

11:34And we couldn't have better ambassadors than our on-air talent. And then you couldn't have a more passionate production team, you know, led by Mike Carey and Jen Morrison and Lisa McLeod, who get up early in the morning every single day to be able to bring this product to the viewers. So you have a lot of people who really care about this. They feel it's a vocation. And ultimately, they just want to spread the football gospel, the soccer gospel, the premier gospel to people. And I think, you know, those who get to experience it and those who get to sample it are really appreciate it. So it's a long way of saying that, you know, we really do believe in our philosophy, do feel in our approach.

12:09And we're not trying to do anything but help people appreciate it and ultimately let them be an extra part of our conversation. draft kings an official partner of the nba is now available in all 50 states so wherever you live follow your favorite nba stars get excited about the biggest matchups and lock in on those buzzer beating moments and with draft kings it's all in one app download the draft king sports app and use code 2400 new draft kings customers can spend five and get 200 in total bonuses paid within 21 days. New DraftKings customers can spend five and get 200 in total bonuses paid within 21 days.

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13:59The bar is open. It's Fantasy Football Happy Hour with Matthew Berry wherever you get your podcasts. One of the things that Rick Cordella, NBC Sports President, told me when NBC gave Rebecca permission to be part of Fox's World Cup coverage was that it was his philosophy and NBC's philosophy that any time you can get a premier talent on a big event, even if it's one in another network, that ultimately pays dividends for your network when she or he returns. I happen to believe that that wasn't always the case, as you know, here in television for a long time. People kept their talent. They wouldn't allow it.

14:39From your perspective, how valuable was it for Rebecca to be part of Fox's coverage for 30 days? They put up, obviously, incredible record viewership numbers. And now she comes back to you, I think, theoretically, maybe not even theoretically, with some people who might sample your coverage because they they really liked her on the World Cup. and discovered that, oh, she's the host of NBC Peacock's Premier League coverage? I think most important, it was an incredible opportunity for Rebecca. She deserved it, she earned it, and the rest of the world got to see what an incredible on-air talent, host, presenter that she is.

15:19And I think that we couldn't have been more excited for her to have that opportunity, and it meant the world to her. I've obviously known Rebecca for a very long time, And I just think it was just an incredible opportunity for her. I think to your larger point, you know, whether and this is meant as no disrespect to anybody, but I truly believe she's the face of soccer in the United States. She is as welcoming and warm as you can get. Her soccer knowledge or football knowledge is second to none. And what she does so well is she gets the best out of everybody with her. You know, it could be a simple question of do you agree?

15:52she has the ability to be the best point guard out there and she is able to to get the best out of people and if you look at growing the sport you talk about that you know the cliche rising tide lifts all boats um ultimately a lot of people got to appreciate soccer in this country with the world cup and she was out there helping make them make sure people appreciate it and to me it was a special opportunity for her and candidly selfishly i got to enjoy watching her coverage so i really I really thought it was, was amazing and an awesome experience for her. I agree. And Fox should thank her because it, it prevented me from going to Telemundo and CBC a couple of times.

16:29So there you go. Thank you, Rebecca Lowe. All right. Anything new this year on your coverage and that very broadly, whatever, whatever you would determine to be new or different or unique from last year? Well, I wouldn't say anything major new. I think one of the things we're really doubling down is how to grow the fan base for generations to come. So there could be simple things in our marketing team led by Lindsey Signor and Lewis Clark. They have a find your match experience. It's 11 questions sort of pop culture quiz, because ultimately that's the that's the biggest question that came out of the World Cup is, hey, I want to find a club.

17:07How do I find a club? And so you go to this pop culture question and it helps you match with clubs. and then it's an easy way to do it. So it's been a lot of fun. You can find that at NBCSports.com. So that's one of the things that we're doing. The Premier League is really doubled down. So there's a coast-to-coast activation opening weekend that starts this Friday on USA and ultimately 20 clubs hosting 20 different watch parties because when you go back to the focus groups and start with being a Premier League fan, it's a badge of honor. They find that market distinction, all the things, but the biggest frustration that they have is it's difficult to have communal viewing because of the early morning kickoffs.

17:47It's hard to get groups together. Now, obviously, there's the group that goes to the pubs and everything else, but it's hard to do that. So they're basically creating, the Premier League's directly creating 20 watch parties to get a bunch of people together to watch each match. So that's the launch of the season. They'll be, on Friday, we're going to announce our next Fan Fest. So that's an awesome experience. And if you ever get a chance to experience it, it's phenomenal where you get people. And again, anybody from England comes over and they say, wait, this makes no sense. You have Liverpool and United fans standing next to each other cheering.

18:17If we're in England, we need horses to separate us and there'll be brawls. So to be able to create those fan fests with collaboration, the Premier League. So that's one in the fall and one in the spring that we'll be doing. And we're going to open the weekend over in the UK. So everybody's going over. I'm traveling tonight and all the talent are traveling this week. So we're going to host it from there and hopefully help people appreciate it. So those are some of the fun things. But again, it goes back to, and again, this sounds boring, but the fundamentals. And, you know, we start the coverage off this weekend and we got to make sure that we really, truly help cover one of the most compelling drama soap operas you can imagine in the Premier League.

18:52You can correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the teams that have moved up into the Premier League this year, Hull City, Ipswich Town and Coventry City. Am I correct? Correct. My thought would be that there's like the promoted teams. It's kind of a cool story. And I imagine like it's a chance for your company to maybe get new fans into the into the tent. You know, even though I'm sure of like they have an interest in the Premier League, even if their team was in the championship, maybe they were watching your coverage. But I don't know that it's that's one thing that's very unique about about relegation soccer is that you get these new teams that come up.

19:33So, like, when you're thinking about a Hull City, Ipswich Town, Coventry City, how do you think about them in terms of the audience? Well, we have to introduce them to a lot of people, not just the new fan base, but the current fan base. Because, I mean, Ipswich was up a couple seasons ago, and Hull was four or five years ago. But Coventry City is very new to during our coverage, and again, only 13 years that we've covered the Premier League. But ultimately, we have to help people appreciate what makes these clubs so special, the traditions, the chants, you name it. everything about it, the grounds.

20:04But what also we have to help people appreciate is relegation of promotion is, is arguably the biggest extremes of agony and joy. You know, when you, you know, when you get promoted, it is the greatest joy. And when you get relegated, it is agonizing. And what's really tough about is when a club gets relegated, it's not just they're going down a league, you know, club has to reduce costs, people get fired, it's soul crushing to people. So there is so much risk you know in the end in american sports you're the worst team hopefully you get the first draft pick whatever it is but if you get if you're the bottom three teams in the primary league there's so much at risk so as the season goes on every single um point matters every single um goal matters and and again there's a lot of people who've always said to me hey listen i don't really love soccer it's kind of boring there's not enough scoring what i would my response to them is that yeah if you do a basketball game there's 80 90 100 points if you have a soccer game, you may watch 90 minutes and you may get one goal.

21:03And that one goal is just such a special moment. You're seeing something that has mean so much to so many people. And the difference in relegation promotion comes down to one goal, comes down to one miss. And so that's why you have to sit in the edge of your seat and really, really appreciate it. So our job is really to help people enjoy the premier experience, but also understand that risk versus reward. And when there's so much at stake and they saw that in the world cup, they saw it knock around rounds, they saw and i think that's what this country saw so much was you know you had these scots up in boston you know how many people sent me texts of the bagpipes and what it meant and take it over fenway park and the origins and you name it like that whole passion is infectious and when you get to experience that in first i mean and when i when i went to my first premier match i don't think i watched what was on the pitch because all i was doing is watching around people chanting experiencing that an opening night and the first um home match for a newly promoted club and those fans bellowing their chants and songs, that's something pretty awesome.

21:59And when you get to get to see that, that's going to help you fall in love with it. And to answer your other, to mention something else, like, and this is blasphemous in England. This is absolutely blasphemous in England, but in the United States, you can be a fan of more than one club, you know, and most, most people in this country are, and that's totally fine in England. It's your birthright. You're born into it. That's your club end of story. But in this country, you can be a fan of more club. Hey, listen, I might like this one club, but how can you not like Coventry city? how cool is that you know they're coming up and look at those fans and hey let me root for a couple more clubs i think that's important for people to appreciate it's like you don't have to this doesn't have to be live or die with your club like it's everybody else eventually it will be but right now just helping uh just watch and enjoy it um sports betting and fantasy sports obviously continue to grow significantly in the united states particularly um uh premier league fantasy like is really over the last couple of years has grown.

22:57How do you approach? And I imagine a lot of this would probably be more maybe studio show than then on the game, but how do you think about, or how do you approach betting and how do you approach fantasy on your studio coverage? So the way I'd respond by saying that anything we do has to be additive to the viewer experience. So, and that goes to sponsor items and everything else. We want to make sure every, you know, we have such limited time because you got to realize that it's most, most programming hours is an hour of televisions, 15 minutes of commercials and promotion. So, so an hour of programming is 15 minutes of commercials.

23:34So that's 45 minutes of content. A first half of a football match is 45 plus stoppage fine. So there is a lot of limited amount of time you have to broadcast and cover content, the studio shows. So we want to make sure everything has impact. So we use our betting and gambling sponsorship as additives. So, hey, odds to win the golden boot. Here's the favorites to win the golden boot. Here's the favorites to get relegated. Here are the odds, you know, Leicester to win the title was, you know, 2001. So we use it as that way to help people appreciate the significance of things. So that's the way we approach that.

24:08fantasy obviously um it it goes down as sort of a dangerous road because all of a sudden you for players to score versus outcomes so it's better to kind of talk about the players themselves and the stars and who's scoring more who's having more assists or whatever it is and who's the best goalkeepers than it is to basically go down and say hey here are the five people you should draft in these positions that positions we're much more focused on again going back to what makes what's the reason people watch it's the clubs it's the matches etc so anything we do with gambling and fantasy has to be a ways to help educate the viewers and help them appreciate what's going on on the pitch.

24:43Most of the experts or the odds people would say Arsenal, Man City, Liverpool, Man United, Chelsea would be your favorites, top five favorites this year. Do you disagree with that? Do you have your own thoughts? Well, I'm not a football expert, but what I would say is I trust our experts, and I think that's safe to say that those are the five. I could sit here and tell you a bunch of other clubs that could surprise you, it and that's what's great about the primary leagues you go into the start of the season and you expect one thing and all of a sudden it flips on its head quite a bit um what i would say is that every single match is compelling and what's what's amazing about the primary league is you could have the top of the table lose to the bottom table and any single weekend but those would be by far and away the favorites right now what i think is really interesting is that in the 13th season we cover the primary league we've never had a really compelling manchester united They finished second a couple of times, but it wasn't close.

25:39And they have a quite a fan base in the United States. It's been dormant for a while and they scored the most points since their new manager took over. So I think some, that's a club that people have their eyes on right now that could really surprise some people. And that fan base is dying for them to be competitive and really come up the top of the table. Look, you get to a certain age and you want to be a little more serious when it comes to your shirt. Anybody who's worn a dress shirt knows just how uncomfortable it can be and how annoying it is when they bunch up under a sweater. So you must check out Collars & Co., makers of the Dress Collar Polo.

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27:30A beautifully designed Squarespace website is the difference between having a movie reviewing hobby and a movie reviewing career. Squarespace, because no matter what you're into, a website makes it real. Use offer code difference for 50 % off select plans. Terms and conditions apply. All right, let me, we're going to finish up here on the NFL, um, because you have a pretty significant role, um, in that coverage. First off, you are directing the Melbourne game, correct, for Netflix? Yes, I am. Okay, so that's just obviously a pretty fascinating venue and place to do an NFL game. And I imagine you've probably flown out there, maybe you've checked the site out or somebody has.

28:17But broadly, what are the unique challenges of that game from your position directing it? well i'll start off by saying we have a really cool job you know we're very very fortunate so whether it's covering the premier league coming the nfl etc it's a really really cool job and we take we're very grateful for it but to be able to do a football game in melbourne is just awesome it really is we got to fly out there at the melbourne cricket ground to do a survey and it's an iconic venue it's massive it's huge and the fan base in australia is just sport mad and And so to be able to do that, I think we're all really excited.

28:55I think we got to direct the game. I got to direct with the producer, Matt Marvin, who will be producing the game in Australia with me. And we got to do Brazil. And when the anthems play, it was, especially in Brazil, was insane. And I remember walking around the ground when we did our survey and Matt Marvin, we call Marv. Marv goes, hey, the anthems here are going to be awesome. And I think that's going to be really, really cool to hear those passionate Aussie fans sing. And we've seen it at the Olympics and you see that passion in the country. So that's the first thing. When you get an opportunity to do a unique sporting event in a venue, you have to find that balance.

29:35The number one most important thing is a sporting competition. We have to make sure we cover and document and serve the viewer and show them what they need to see and everything else. That's part one of it. but the venue is very much a character in the, in the story, a character in the, in the, in the production. So we have to figure out ways that we can incorporate and really document this unique environment they're playing in. So that could be aerial cameras or drone cameras or jibs or which ways you, you, you show crowd shots, et cetera, just help really appreciate it. But the football field itself is very much fits the, the, the Australian rules football and the cricket ground is so huge.

30:14It's this huge oval. So when you put the football field in, it's actually fits quite small in there compared to what you normally see in a football, American football stadium. So that alone, the unique layout, the unique feeling of it, the unique grounds, it's a very, very huge and wide, but low. And so that viewer experience and how you do that. So that's the basic overview of the philosophy behind it. And then it comes down to the mechanics of, you know, where do you put cameras and how do you do the camera angles? And we worked really close to the NFL and the NFL hires a company called Populous who does all their big international events, who does the Super Bowl as well.

30:53There's a name, Jen Hill, who works for them, who is an absolute superstar. And we work closely on many shows and she's incredible. And then of course, Ani Bose, the NFL and Lauren and Lucy and the rest of the team really help us as we go through it and really figure out what's the best camera angles, but also how are we making sure we don't impact the fan experience? And then when you work with the entertainment team and what they have planned for opening ceremony, et cetera, it comes down to that. So it is unique. I think every aspect of the way you do something in one country is very different in other countries.

31:25So there's going to be sometimes you have to kind of find ways to do things differently. So it's one big challenge, problem solve, et cetera, how you want to do it. but ultimately in the end, it's an incredible experience. When would you fly out there? Just so that you're at your best? I believe I'm flying out there on the... Well, also it takes three days to get there. So let's start off with that. I'll look it up right now. I think I'm flying out the Friday and land the Sunday or fly out the Thursday and land the Saturday before. We fly the Thursday and land the Saturday before. And the game is on a Wednesday or Thursday?

31:59Well, the game is on a Thursday United States and it's on a Friday in Melbourne. It's actually 1030 in the morning in Australia. So it's, again, unique from lights to sunlight, the camera angles to everything else. So a lot of uniqueness to it, but I think it will be a pretty special experience. I'm telling you right now, it's one of the coolest things I've been able to be a part of it, just playing this. And obviously getting to Workless, we're the Netflix team, Gabe and Kate Jackson and Lindsay Mandia have been incredible to work with And they have such great vision and they've been able to provide all the resources you need.

32:35And it's been an incredible collaboration as we work towards putting on this broadcast. Yeah, two more for you. Gabe Spitzer, who Pierre is mentioning in terms of Netflix executives. And Netflix is my next question. Does Netflix, in your opinion, have a certain style of NFL production? I know it's been a lot of NBC people, but would you, would you, would you, do they, do they, are they unique or is there something unique that you've seen so far about how they do football? I don't think we've gotten into the football coverage philosophy yet. What I would say was, is no different than any other NFL broadcast partner.

33:13They care passionately about the viewer experience and their goal is to make sure they put on the best possible experience for the viewer. so that's that's been the number one focus I wouldn't say there's anything unique or different to other broadcasts football broadcasts because in the end their goal is to put on the premier top-notch football coverage and ultimately we'd be doing the viewer disservice we try to be different for the sake of being different I think their goal is to be impactful for the sake of being impactful in your position do you have any say in who the on-air talent is when it comes to Netflix's front-facing people?

33:52We do not. That's their selection. So Netflix makes that call, even if there's people you've worked with, even if they use NBC's, quote-unquote, NBC talent? They've, we've in some parts discussed people, but ultimately, it's their decision. They worked really closely. Fred Guideli's been involved, and he's been guiding them, so Fred's been having most of the conversation with them about talent. Got it. Okay. And then, lastly, so Between you, you're going to do all of the Netflix games. You're directing all the Netflix games. Yes. With the exception of one on Christmas. Cause there's two games on Christmas.

34:26Okay. All right. Do they give you a free subscription peer or no? I haven't asked for one. I already have a subscription, so I'm all set. All right. Very, wow. Very diplomatic. All right. Pierre Moussa is a coordinating producer for NBC sports. He is the key executive point person when it comes to their coverage of the premier league. obviously that you go on to NBC Sports or Peacock's website, and you can see sort of all the schedule that they have. Obviously, every game in the Premier League should be an incredible year. And as he mentioned here as well, he's a director for NBC's coverage of the NBA as well as he's doing his Netflix.

35:10Because I didn't get the chance to ask you about the NBA, but you got to be excited. A lot of movement in this offseason. It's going to be awesome for you guys. Yeah, I started out when I first started in television. I came to NBC and I was a runner and I asked for a job and they said, you can't work in television unless you move to New York City. So I moved to New York City with a bunch of college buddies couches and just started showing for free. And they eventually put me on the NBA on NBC. And that's when I first started. I did the very last NBA and NBC broadcast as a graphics PA was part of that and phenomenal teams that we were a part of.

35:45And then it left and went to ESPN. So when I got to be a part of it in return, it was really special for me personally, but was also kind of what also was special about it was there was a huge responsibility for us to carry that legacy of the NBA and NBC. So this last year, getting to work with Frank DeGrace and getting to work with with Toriko and Reggie and Jamal and the rest of the team was just such a thrill. And to bring back what made the NBA and NBC so special was a career highlight. So we're really excited. I do believe between season one and season two, when you launch something second season, it just that's where you can make the huge strides and you can make the biggest improvements.

36:23And I just it's we're just so thrilled and excited about the season. And again, the NBA is pretty darn compelling. So we're looking forward to October 21st at an MMSG. It should be a pretty special night. And again, talk about a passionate fan base. I mean, that Knicks fan base has been dying and starving for this banner raising. So it'll be pretty cool to be there for that. That will be very cool. All right, Pierre, thank you very much. Safe travels to England. Just stick around here for literally one minute as I will do my mediocre closeout for you. So my thanks to Pierre Moussa for all his insight.

36:56Obviously, check out the Premier League, NBC's coverage is first rate. I've certainly written about, I've probably written, I could even guess, 100 ,000 words on their coverage or something to that effect over the years. And it really is top notch. If you like these kind of conversations, head to our archives. We've done a lot of stuff, obviously, on Tony Romo, what the NFL is going to do regarding CBS and Fox saying that they were not going to re-up. So check all the roundtables on that. Linda Cohen and Neil Everett were on this podcast on July 30th, talking about ESPN, Derek Ray, speaking of soccer, Fox Soccer broadcaster, as well as the voice of the Bundesliga was on this podcast July 14th.

37:39You can check that out as well. And if you are into women's basketball, Gino or Emma, guest on this podcast July 6th. I want to thank James Jackson for all his hard work producing this podcast. Thanks to everybody at Odyssey for their support. And most of all, thank you for listening. We'll see you soon on the Sports Media Podcast.

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