Soccer on ESPN Platforms in May – MLS Matches on ABC, ESPN and ESPN+; FA Cup Final on ESPN+; Italian Serie A and Bundesliga; and more
ABC, ESPN, ESPN+, ESPN Deportes – will carry marquee soccer matches from Italian Serie A, Bundesliga, and three cup finals – DFB-Pokal Final, England’s FA Cup Final and Coppa Italia Final – in May, the final month of the European soccer season.
First ever MLS Doubleheader on ABC Network on Sunday, May 9
FA Cup Final Exclusively on ESPN+ – Chelsea FC vs. Leicester City on Saturday, May 15
Special ESPN FC Pregame, Halftime and Postgame Shows – Exclusively on ESPN+
ESPN platforms – ABC, ESPN, ESPN+, ESPN Deportes – will carry marquee soccer matches from Italian Serie A, Bundesliga, and three cup finals – DFB-Pokal Final, England’s FA Cup Final and Coppa Italia Final – in May, the final month of the European soccer season. In addition, the 26th season of Major League Soccer continues on ESPN linear television networks with five matches in the month, including three on ABC.
ESPN+ will livestream the 140th FA Cup Final on May 15, and the schedule of 46 Serie A matches on ESPN+ in May will include a pair of high-profile clashes from atop the standings: Juventus vs. AC Milan (May 9) and Juventus vs. Inter Milan (May 15). ESPN FC, the daily soccer news, highlights and analysis show on ESPN+, will feature special editions around some of the matches.
MLS on ABC, ESPN and ESPN+
This Sunday (May 9), ABC will televise its first ever MLS doubleheader. Both games will also be available in Spanish on ESPN Deportes.
Following the Eastern Conference clash of Inter Miami CF vs. Atlanta United FC at 1 p.m. ET, Pacific Northwest rivals Portland Timbers and Seattle Sounders play their first Cascadia Cup contest of the season on ABC at 3 p.m.
Also in May, New England Revolution host reigning MLS Cup champions Columbus Crew in a rematch of last year’s Eastern Conference Final on Sunday, May 16 at 6 p.m. on ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes
ESPN+, the exclusive home of approximately 350 out-of-market MLS games, will livestream more than 50 Major League Soccer matches in May.
MLS on ESPN Networks in May:
Date
Time (ET)
Matchup
Platform(s)
Sat, May 8
6 p.m.
Orlando City SC vs. New York City FCEnglish: Jon Champion and Taylor TwellmanSpanish: Richard Mendez and Alex Pareja
ESPN / ESPN Deportes
Sun, May 9
1 p.m.
Inter Miami CF vs. Atlanta United FCEnglish: Steve Cangialosi and Alejandro MorenoSpanish: Mendez and Pareja
ABC / ESPN Deportes
3 p.m.
Portland Timbers vs. Seattle SoundersEnglish: Champion and TwellmanSpanish: Mauricio Pedroza and Herculez Gomez
ABC / ESPN Deportes
Sun, May 16
6 p.m.
New England Revolution vs. Columbus Crew SCEnglish: Champion and TwellmanSpanish: Mendez and Pareja
ESPN2 / ESPN Deportes
Sat, May 22
3:30 p.m.
Portland Timbers vs. LA GalaxyEnglish: Champion and TwellmanSpanish: Mendez and Gomez
ABC / ESPN Deportes
FA Cup Final on ESPN+: Chelsea FC vs. Leicester City
The 140th season of England’s FA Cup – the world’s oldest soccer cup competition – will conclude with Chelsea FC (4) vs. Leicester City (3) on Saturday, May 15, at 12:15 p.m., live from London’s Wembley Stadium. The matchup of top-four teams in the English Premier League standings will stream live in English and Spanish on ESPN+.
Host Dan Thomas and Craig Burley, in ESPN’s Bristol, Conn. studio, will be joined by reporter Alexis Nunes and analyst Nedum Onuoha from Wembley Stadium for ESPN FC’s special pre- and postgame shows. Guests: former Liverpool player Luis Garcia, and Chelsea and French National Team legend Frank Leboeuf.
FA Cup Final on ESPN+:
Date
Time (ET)
Matchup
Platform(s)
Sat, May 15
11 a.m.
ESPN FC – 2021 FA Cup Final Pregame SpecialBristol: Dan Thomas (host) and Craig BurleyWembley Stadium: Alexis Nunes and Nedum Onuoha
ESPN+
12:15 p.m.
2021 FA Cup Final – Chelsea vs. Leicester CityEnglish: Jon Champion and Taylor Twellman
ESPN+
2:30 p.m. (approx.)
ESPN FC – 2021 FA Cup Postgame Show
ESPN+
Italian Soccer
With five teams – Atalanta, Juventus, AC Milan, Napoli and Lazio – playing for the available three UEFA Champions League spots, the last four weeks of Serie A action is poised for an exciting finish. ESPN platforms will showcase the season-ending storylines. Highlights:
For the first time in a decade, Juventus will not take home the Scudetto (Serie A title) and are in jeopardy of missing out on the top European club soccer championship in 2021-22. Currently, three teams – Atalanta, Juventus, AC Milan – are tied with 69 points, with Napoli (67) and Lazio (64 / with an extra match to play) chasing a top-four finish
Coppa Itallia: On Wednesday, May 19, six-time FIFA Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo and U.S. Men’s National Team star Wes McKinnie will lead Juventus into the Coppa Italia Final against Atalanta for the team’s only chance for a trophy in the 2020-21 season. ESPN FC postgame show will follow immediately after the match, exclusively on ESPN+
Sunday, May 23, ESPN platforms will combine to showcase all 10 matches in the final matchday of the season.
Serie A/Coppa Italia Schedule:
Date
Time (ET)
Matchup
Platform(s)
Sun, May 9
2 p.m.
Juventus vs. AC MilanEnglish: Mark Donaldson and Matteo BonettiSpanish: Ricardo Ortiz and Andres Agulla
ESPN+
4 p.m.
ESPN FC Postgame SpecialDan Thomas, Shaka Hislop, Gab Marcotti and Jurgen Klinsmann
ESPN+
Sat, May 15
11:50 a.m.
Juventus vs. Inter MilanEnglish: Donaldson and BonettiSpanish: Ortiz and Agulla
ESPN+
Sat, May 15
2:30 p.m.
AS Roma vs. Lazio
ESPN+
Wed, May 19
TBD
Atalanta vs. Juventus (Coppa Italia Final)English: Ross Dyer and Matteo BonettiSpanish: Ortiz and Agulla
ESPN2 / ESPN Deportes
Sun, May 23
TBD
Serie A – Final Season Match Day Dyer and Bonetti
TBD
German Soccer: Borussia Dortmund vs. RB Leipzig
Top-5 Bundesliga clubs Borussia Dortmund (No. 5) and RB Leipzig (No. 2) will play back-to-back matches against one another on ESPN networks in the week ahead:
In a Bundesliga league match on Saturday, Borussia Dortmund will continue their campaign for a Champions League spot (top-four finish in the regular season) as they host RB Leipzig at Signal Iduna Park on ESPN, ESPN+ and ESPN Deportes
Five days later on Thursday, May 13, the two teams meet again in the 78th edition of the DFB-Pokal (German Cup) Final at Olympiastadon in Berlin (ESPN2 and ESPN Deportes). Coverage will include an ESPN FC postgame show immediately following the cup final, exclusively on ESPN+.
German Soccer:
Date
Time (ET)
Matchup
Platform(s)
Sat, May 8
9 a.m.
Borussia Dortmund vs. RB Leipzig English: Derek Rae and TBDSpanish: Fernando Palomo and Mario Kempes
ESPN / ESPN+ /ESPN Deportes
Thu, May 13
2:30 p.m.
RB Leipzig vs. Borussia Dortmund (DFB-Pokal / German Cup Final)English: Rae and TBDSpanish: Palomo and Kempes
ESPN2 / ESPN Deportes
U.S. Men’s National Team (ESPN, Sunday, May 30 at 2 p.m.)
In preparation for an important CONCACAF Nations League and Gold Cup campaign, the U.S. Men’s National Team will play Switzerland at Kybun Park in St. Gallen, Switzerland on May 30. Jon Champion (play-by-play) and analyst Taylor Twellman will provide match commentary beginning at 2 p.m. on ESPN and the ESPN App.
Top four Premier League teams – Manchester City, Manchester United, Leicester City and Chelsea – in action on ESPN+
Marquee matches: No. 7 Everton vs. No. 1 Manchester City on Saturday; No. 3 Leicester City vs. No. 2 Manchester United on Sunday
ESPN+ exclusive presentation of 2020-21 Emirates FA Cup will continue with doubleheader quarterfinal round matches on Saturday and Sunday. The top matchup in this round is between current top-four Premier League teams – Leicester City (No. 3) vs. Manchester United (No. 2) – on Sunday at 12:45 p.m. ET, from Leicester City’s King Power Stadium. All four matches will stream live in English and Spanish.
Commentators:Jon Champion and Craig Burley will provide English-language commentary for Everton vs. Manchester City on Saturday at 1:15 p.m., with MiguelSimon and Francisco Canepa calling the match in Spanish. On Sunday, Champion will pair with Taylor Twellman on Leicester City vs. Manchester United at 12:45 p.m., while Spanish-language commentary will feature German Sosa and Canepa.
2020-21 FA Cup Quarterfinals Schedule:
Date
Time (ET)
Match
Platform
Sat, Mar 20
8 a.m.
A.F.C. Bournemouth vs. Southampton F.C.
ESPN+
1:15 p.m.
Everton vs. Manchester CityEnglish: Jon Champion and Craig BurleySpanish: Miguel Simon and Francisco Canepa
ESPN+
.Sun, Mar 21
9:25 a.m.
Chelsea vs. Sheffield United
ESPN+
12:45 p.m.
Leicester City vs. Manchester UnitedEnglish: Champion and Taylor TwellmanSpanish: German Sosa and Canepa
ESPN+
Surround Content:
ESPN FC, the daily soccer news, highlight and analysis program available exclusively on ESPN+, will provide extensive coverage of the FA Cup quarterfinal round with previews of the matchups on Friday and Saturday. On Sunday at 5:45 p.m., a special edition of the program, hosted by Dan Thomas and analysts Craig Burley, Frank Leboeuf and Nedum Onuoha, will recap all the FA Cup matches from the weekend.
In addition to live matches, ESPN+ will feature FA Cup programs including FA Cup Quarterfinal Round Preview Show and the FA Cup Quarterfinal Round Highlight Show (after Monday). ESPN+ will stream the FA Cup Semifinal Draw live on Sunday, March 21.
ESPN.com/soccer will continue its coverage of the 2020-21 FA Cup with quarterfinal round content from correspondents Mark Ogden covering Everton vs. Manchester City, and Rob Dawson reporting from Leicester City vs. Manchester United, as well as features, previews and post-match coverage.
2020-21 FA Cup quarterfinal round highlights:
Bournemouth vs Southampton – Southampton features Scotland national team forward Che Adams, former England international Theo Wolcott, and Japanese national team forward Takumi Minamino, on loan from Liverpool FC. This is the only match in the quarterfinals with non-Premier League team Bournemouth, in a matchup of two England South Coast teams, separated by only 30 miles.
Everton vs. Manchester City – The meeting of two legendary soccer managers, Everton’s Carlo Ancelotti Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola. Manchester City, the six-time FA Cup winners and runaway favorites for the Premier League title, features a collection of stars who play for their respective national teams, including goalkeeper Zack Steffen (USA), Raheem Sterling (England), Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium), ĺlkay Gündoǧan(Germany), and more. A retooled Everton, under Ancelotti, has James Rodriguez (Colombia), Richarlison (Brazil), Dominic Calvert-Lewin(England), Gylfi Sigurðsson (Iceland), Alex Iwobi (Nigeria), and others.
Chelsea vs Sheffield United – New Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel is riding a 13-game unbeaten streak into the 2020-21 FA Cup quarterfinals, and a campaign to be the first German coach to win the FA Cup. Chelsea, with players such as Christian Pulisic (USA), Mason Mount (England), Antonio Rüdiger (Germany), N’Golo Kanté (France), is chasing its ninth FA Cup title. Sheffield United has won the competition four times; last in 1925.
Leicester City vs Manchester United – Host Leicester City is seeking its first FA Cup title led by manager Brendan Rodgers and players such as Jamie Vardy and James Maddison (England), goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel (Denmark), Wilfred Ndidi (Nigeria), and Dennis Praet (Belgium). Manchester United is the second most-successful club in the competition with 12 FA Cup titles, and an equally formidable roster: Marcus Rashford(England), Bruno Fernandes (Portugal), Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial (France), and Daniel James (Wales). The manager is Ole Gunnar Solskjær, a Manchester United legend.
About ESPN+
ESPN+ is the industry-leading sports streaming service that offers fans in the U.S. thousands of live sports events, original programming not available on ESPN’s linear TV or digital networks and exclusive editorial content from dozens of ESPN writers and reporters. Launched in April 2018, ESPN+ has grown to more than 12.1 million subscribers.
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