Soccer News: Fox Sports Team Adds Jenny Taft, Julie Stewart-Binks And Grant Wahl
As the world awaits the great soccer action at the FIFA Women’s World Cup this summer – the news media giant is getting ready to report the soccer action … lining up talent to give all of us at home a fresh perspective.
It is 18 days and counting down to the start of FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP 2015™, and Jenny Taft, Julie Stewart-Binks and Grant Wahl have been formally named to the team FOX Sports is assembling to cover the world’s biggest and most exciting women’s sports event.
Taft has been assigned the major role of being embedded with the U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT), providing in-depth reports, breaking news and features on the squad throughout the tournament as she has since World Cup Qualifying.
Stewart-Binks, a native Canadian, serves as a roving reporter, and is expected to report from at least 11 different games in four different cities during the group stage, among them the opening match between Canada and China (Edmonton); the tilt between title contenders France vs. England (Moncton); and top-ranked Germany taking on Norway (Ottawa).
Wahl serves as correspondent-at-large, covering the wide-array of stories that develop naturally during a month-long tournament.
In addition to the match telecasts they’re assigned, their reports also appear during FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP TODAY, FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP TONIGHT, AMERICA’S PREGAME, FOX SPORTS LIVE and the popular @TheBuzzer feature made available via FOX Sports’ social and digital platforms.
“We’re very fortunate to have these three gifted, energetic professionals contributing to our Women’s World Cup coverage,” said David Neal, FIFA Women’s World Cup on FOX Executive Producer. “Jenny and Julie are both rising stars at FOX Sports and have spent the last two years demonstrating their reporting skills and versatility, while Grant is one of the top soccer journalists in the world. When there’s news to report during the tournament, we have a team in place that can cover it.”
A former collegiate athlete possessing broad knowledge across several sports, Taft’s profile has expanded greatly since joining FOX Sports in 2013. In addition to her position as a reporter embedded with the USWNT, which began during the CONCACAF Women’s Championship in 2014, she works as a reporter for the network’s Pac-12 college football coverage and other events, as a fill-in host on AMERICA’S PREGAME and also as an anchor at the FOX Sports 1 update desk. Additional assignments have included Supercross, the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs and MLB games.
The Canadian-born Stewart-Binks has proven herself to be a versatile on-air personality since moving to the U.S. in time for the launch of FOX Sports 1 in 2013. She has served as a news update anchor, studio show host, soccer sideline reporter, a live event reporter and one-on-one interviewer. In addition to news updates, Stewart-Binks hosted FOX SOCCER DAILY during its run. She also provided daily segments from the Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, served as a reporter during the NHL playoffs for FOX SPORTS LIVE in 2014 and covered the Guinness Champions Cup soccer tournament as a sideline reporter last summer. Stewart-Binks is also a regular event correspondent for AMERICA’S PREGAME, and in 2011 anchored FOX Soccer Channel’s flagship program, FOX SOCCER REPORT.
Wahl is one of the world’s leading soccer journalists, and has been reporting for FOX Sports channels since 2012. He joined Sports Illustrated in November 1996 as a reporter and was promoted to his current position of senior writer in October 2000. Wahl has covered eight World Cups (five men’s, three women’s) and four Olympics for SI.
Kate Abdo and Rob Stone anchor FOX Sports studio coverage from a brand-new state-of-the-art studio in Vancouver beginning Thursday, June 4 on AMERICA’S PREGAME and FOX SPORTS LIVE. FOX Sports’ studio analysts headlining the network’s pregame, halftime and postgame coverage, as well as providing live hits into FOX Sports 1 signature programs AMERICA’S PREGAME and FOX SPORTS LIVE, are Monica Gonzalez, Ariane Hingst, Angela Hucles, Alexi Lalas, Christine Latham, Heather Mitts, Leslie Osborne, Kelly Smith, Eric Wynalda and Dr. Joe Machnik.
Match broadcast teams are: Glenn Davis & Christine Latham; JP Dellacamera, Cat Whitehill & Tony DiCicco; Jenn Hildreth & Kyndra de St. Aubin; Justin Kutcher & Aly Wagner; and John Strong & Danielle Slaton. In addition to her studio work, Hucles also provides game analysis. Dellacamera, Whitehill and DiCicco have been assigned to the three U.S. games in the group stage.
FOX Sports plans the most expansive and comprehensive multi-platform coverage ever of the FIFA Women’s World Cup™, including an unprecedented 16 matches airing live on FOX broadcast network, when the tournament commences on June 6.
FOX Sports televises all 52 games in the expanded tournament from six cities across Canada between June 6 and July 5, 2015 live on FOX; FOX Sports 1, America’s fastest growing sports network; and FOX Sports 2. All games are available on tablets and mobile devices via the FOX Sports GO app and online.
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