FC Dallas, Mavs Play-by-Play Announcer Calling Olympic Soccer – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth
Mark Followill is used to naming play-by-play for the Dallas Mavericks and FC Dallas, but his career is poised for another international career.
“It is every broadcaster’s dream to take part in the Olympic Games. I was so lucky when I did it in Rio in 2016 [Olympics]. We were in Stamford, Connecticut, calling the Games from afar. I then found out about a month or two earlier that I was going to call the football games there and it was just amazing, ”said Followill.
He said that remotely viewing a game is another challenge, but that’s not just a pandemic precaution, it happens a lot. He also said that he is very excited that he doesn’t have to take a 13-hour plane trip to Tokyo to be part of Olympic history.
“Yeah, I wouldn’t really enjoy such a long trip,” he joked. “But I’ve played a lot of football in the last 10 years. My time at FC Dallas helped build someone into the American football broadcast scene. And then I got other international opportunities. I was still surprised when they called and said they wanted me. It didn’t come until January. I didn’t know how or what to expect after they were postponed and what the coverage would be like and how it would be restricted. So yes, I was surprised to get this call. “
Followill will host the men’s and women’s soccer games thousands of kilometers from the actual venues.
“We’re going to cancel the games from the screen and that’s what we did in 2016. A lot of sport was done at the Olympic Games in the past. A large percentage because of health and safety now and the limitation on the number of people who can travel to Tokyo, so that helped because we practiced with it, but each game takes me several hours to prepare. “Followill said.
He said while he’s excited to call the Games and see the action, it’s the people behind the action who make him most proud to be reporting on an Olympics again.
We don’t just cover sports. We cover people who play sports. Everyone has a story and this is an opportunity to tell people’s stories. It’s a really unique and fun part of it, ”said Followill.
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