No Maltese for World Cup? ‘We’re insulted’

During 2014's World Cup in Brazil, Maltese viewers will be denied the opportunity to watch the 64 matches in Maltese, following the Public Broadcasting Services' decision to broadcast the games in English.

PBS insiders have told MaltaToday that the decision was taken due to the "poor quality of commentary" provided by a limited pool of commentators.

During the last two major tournaments, PBS offered viewers the possibility of choosing between different languages. Notwithstanding that a small segment of Maltese society speaks and understands only Maltese, this time around commentary will only be available in English.

PBS Head of Sports Peter Cossai refused to comment and said that questions should be directed to the station's CEO Anton Attard.

Attard told MaltaToday "It is not custom for PBS to transmit all 64 games for free.  In the last World Cup, Maltese viewers had to switch to a service provider to follow some of the matches. There was no issue of understanding a foreign language, in most cases English or Italian, then and I don't think there is now."

He added that the World Cup rights acquired by PBS give the broadcaster access to live English commentaries  directly from the different stadia which are integrated in the live transmission.

"This is very different to what we try and do in Malta which essentially is commenting on the basis of what you see on a TV. Over the past few years, with the increase in transmission of football games like the Malta Premier League, Champions League and Europa League, we have and will continue to give numerous opportunities to Maltese commentators."

He said that PBS is also committed to broadcast dedicated World Cup programmes which will be in Maltese.   

The art of football commentary should serve to reduce the distance between the spectators and the commentators, but in recent years Maltese commentators, with a few exceptions, have been a source of amusement and ridicule.

The amateurish quality of commentary offered by a mishmash of sport journalists and pseudo-experts is a far cry from that offered on foreign television stations epitomized by legendary football commentators such as Sandro Ciotti or John Motson.

Following an influx of new commentators during Euro 2012, PBS paid commentators €50 per game, down from the €70 paid during the 2010 World Cup. However, with the notable exception of one or two commentators, there was no tangible effect on the quality of commentary.

Trained and experienced commentators around the world master the language and put great effort in their preparation, pronunciation and animation.

They normally have an ability to vividly describe what is happening on the pitch while dishing out relevant stats at the right time and keeping viewers glued to their screens by creating excitement.

John Motson, voted the greatest football commentator in English history, once noted that commentators "must get excitement, passion and enthusiasm into their voice so that the viewer at home can get into a game and enjoy it to the full." 

In Malta, viewers have become accustomed to local commentators mispronouncing names, confusing players and getting entangled in incomprehensible non-sequiturs.

"Some of them believe that Yugoslavia still exists and others have a habit to blabber on without describing what is going on in the pitch as they sit comfortably in studios 10,000 miles away from the stadia," a PBS insider who spoke to MaltaToday said.

The BBC and other institutions abroad offer training courses and support structures which prepare journalists, while Maltese commentators scramble for the few opportunities available without receiving any formal training.

But the widely respected sports journalist George Micallef said the decision was an "insult to Maltese sport journalists," adding that he completely disagreed with the national broadcaster's decision.

"I am hurt by this decision because I do not expect the national broadcaster to ignore the Maltese language in such a blatant way. If anything PBS should offer viewers the possibility to choose between English and Maltese," he said.

The veteran journalist added that he was surprised that none of the sports journalists' associations had spomen out about the decision, which he said was an "insult" to PBS sports journalists and freelance commentators like himself.

"If PBS believes that it does not have enough competent commentators within its ranks it should offer training to its journalists or farm out commentators. There's no need to have a big pool of commentators. Italy's RAI only employs six commentators to cover a major tournament," Micallef said.

Fellow football commentator and Malta Sports Journalists Association secretary-general Sandro Micallef agreed that viewers should be given a choice between different languages, however he added that some commentators were not suitable for the job.

"The majority of Maltese commentators are well prepared but some others are not," he said, explaining that in recent tournaments a minority of commentators "underperformed" and gave a bad name to the rest.

"Unfortunately during the 2012 European Championships a small number of commentators were unprepared and got carried away and this reflected badly on the profession. The level of commentary suffered because commentators are not present in the stadia. In the few rare occasions when Maltese commentators were present for live events, the level increased drastically," Micallef said.

He also said that journalists should shoulder their responsibility and ensure that they are well prepared before accepting such jobs, "otherwise they will underperform."

Explaining that PBS must also look at its commercial interests, Micallef said:  "I respect the station's decision because I am sure decisions are taken in the viewers' best interest and I wouldn't be surprised if sponsors put pressure on PBS in regards to the level of commentary of live matches."

Two experienced PBS journalists, Charles Vella and Chris Cassar agreed that they would respect whatever decision PBS took, with Vella insisting that no final decision had been taken yet.

On his part, said he would be disappointed if World Cup matches are not broadcast in Maltese. "The national station has a duty to broadcast in Maltese. However, as a person involved, I would feel hard done by even though I will respect the station's decision."