Women's World Cup not on free TV: Handball boss angry

Women's World Cup not on free TV: Handball boss angry

DHB boss Andreas Michelmann has reacted with incomprehension to the fact that the World Championship matches of the German handball team will once again not be shown live on free-to-air television. He sharply criticized the public broadcasters in particular.

"I see the diversity of sport being jeopardized by the very one-sided coverage by ARD and ZDF. With the fixation on soccer - both men's and women's - it is high time to think about basing the coverage on the success of the teams," the President of the German Handball Federation told the German Press Agency.

He expects the public broadcasters "to question whether their reporting is still up to date or whether it is not time to present the entire spectrum of sport and that the women get a real chance to be shown," added the 64-year-old.

When asked by dpa, ARD and ZDF pointed out that they do not own the TV rights. These have been acquired by the online channel Sportdeutschland.tv, which broadcasts all World Cup matches - including those of the DHB team - live on the Internet for a fee. The German team will start the tournament on Thursday (18:00) in Herning, Denmark, against Japan, with Iran and Poland as their other group opponents.

1. Despite the upcoming Women's World Cup matches, the German handball team's games will not be broadcast live on free-to-air television, which has upset DHB president Andreas Michelmann.
2. Michelmann expresses his concern about the one-sided coverage of sports by ARD and ZDF, particularly their focus on soccer, and calls for a broader perspective in sports reporting.
3. Instead of being shown on free TV, the World Cup matches will be exclusively available on the online channel Sportdeutschland.tv, which requires a subscription fee to watch.
4. Andreas Michelmann, the president of the German Handball Federation, encourages public broadcasters to reconsider their reporting strategy and provide a fairer representation of various sports, especially the women's national handball team.

Source: www.dpa.com