This is a US phenomena and relates to US football (not the real game of soccer).
I am not sure how many years ago, but I am sure that someone will tell me, the US National Football League decided to move one of the Sunday games to Monday night as a “featured” game of the week. In reality, since having one game at a time when there weren’t other games it was hoped to draw a larger audience than any one single of the Sunday games. I don’t really think it had anything to do with improving fan ability to see an additional game; more likely the decision had to do with having an additional time slot to generate additional advertising revenue.
After all, the game is not about fans or teams; it is about making money for the franchise and the franchise owners. More TV time slots that don’t compete with other views of the same sport means more money.
I think I have already ranted multiple times over the past few years about the advertisements. There are your car ads, your insurance ads, and your fast food ads. The occasional public service announcement is tossed in to cover those slots which weren’t sold. Oh – I forgot! There are also phone ads (both the actual cell phones and the phone networks) and cable TV programming ads.
Tonight’s game was mostly remarkable for desultory playing, an incredible number of penalties, and more unsportsmanlike like calls than are wracked up in an average season. The Vikings were ok, the Bears were not.
My corner of the TV room/back room doesn’t face the TV. It doesn’t need to. I can hear it, I can see it anyway. If I was a bit smarter, or thought of it when I was up, I could grab my headphones which are on the credenza under the TV and block the whole thing out.
But there is something worse than Monday night football.
This week there will also be Tuesday night football…