- "Today" instead of the semi-final of the basketball tournament: ZDF apologizes
So he scares off his audience: Just 30 seconds before the dramatic end of the German women's 3x3 basketball Olympic semi-final against Canada, ZDF dropped its coverage and aired - ads. The ZDF "Sportstudio" had abruptly ended the broadcast to first show commercials and then promptly air the "heute" news. Viewers reacted angrily on social media. "You guys are clueless" or "What an outrageous move by ZDF, aren't you doing well enough?"
At the time of the broadcast interruption, it was 15:14 for the German team on the Place de la Concorde. Many basketball fans hurriedly tried to switch to a livestream, but not everyone could watch in real-time as the German team won 16:15 against the actual favorites from Canada.
ZDF Sports Director Yorck Polus apologizes for basketball blunder
Now the station admits the mistake: "Due to the tense global political situation, the 'heute' news at 7 pm had to be broadcast at its usual time," ZDF Sports Director Yorck Polus told the German Press Agency. "But breaking off the broadcast just before the end of the German women's 3x3 basketball semi-final was a mistake. We regret that viewers in the main program missed the final basket and the German team's entry into the final."
That same evening, at 10 pm, the German team played against Spain and won the gold medal. This time, ZDF broadcast the final in full length.
Despite the basketball team's thrilling victory over Canada in the semi-finals, many fans missed the decisive moment due to the unexpected broadcast interruption. Regardless of the gold medal match, the German 3x3 basketball team continued to excel on the court.
