THIS IS GOING TO SUCK!!!!!
ESPN is taking its cross promotion to the next level for the start of the college football season, and although it’s all happening at “The Most Magical Place on Earth,” fans probably won’t be thrilled about this.
For the first College GameDay show of the season for Week 0 — Saturday, August 24 when there are just two games — ESPN, whose parent company is Disney, will broadcast from the Magic Kingdom Park at Walt Disney World in Orlando. It’s ahead of the first game of the season, Miami vs. Florida at Camping World Stadium, which is only a few miles away from Disney’s resort.
This seems like not a terrible idea at first, right? Lee Corso would pair perfectly with Mickey Mouse for a cheesy segment about football while more-tame-than-typical fans cheer in the background.
College GameDay
✔@CollegeGameDay
Hey Coach, where are you going for Week 0?
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1:30 PM - Aug 13, 2019
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1,125 people are talking about this
The problem is the fan experience for this show sounds awful.
First, signs — which are more synonymous with College GameDaythan anything else — are not allowed. That’s a Disney World rule, and similarly, things like banners, flags, horns, whistles and artificial noise makers are also prohibited.
OK, fine, whatever. But fans with tickets to the Saturday night game can still show up and make a ton of noise in the background, right?
Of course they can, but for the price of admission to the theme park, which is famously expensive. So that means for adults looking to attend GameDay at Disney, tickets for the Magic Kingdom on a Saturday are $133 — and $127 for kids.
But that’s not all.
There is no real access to the commentators or GameDay set for fans on site. According to ESPN’s fan guide, those in attendance “may catch a glimpse of the live broadcast as it takes place at the elevated train station on Main Street, U.S.A.” — which may or may not be close to the set.
So, to recap: If you want to attend the first College GameDay broadcast, it’ll cost more than $100 — more than $250 if you don’t want to go alone — you can’t bring a sign or flag and you can watch the show from a train station inside the Magic Kingdom that’s an unknown distance from the set.
Sounds like a great way to ensure people don’t show up.
The sea of rowdy fans with their energy and chants and face paint and signs and flags help make GameDay as a TV show. It’s entertaining and fun, and people watching at home love looking for the funniest/most insulting sign. For The Win writes about the signs every week because they’re usually hilarious.
But with the Week 0 broadcast set up, ESPN has stripped away a huge part of what college football fans love about the show.
But at least things will be back to normal for Week 1, when GameDaywill be at Clemson for the following Saturday for the defending champs’ opener against Georgia Tech.
ESPN is taking its cross promotion to the next level for the start of the college football season, and although it’s all happening at “The Most Magical Place on Earth,” fans probably won’t be thrilled about this.
For the first College GameDay show of the season for Week 0 — Saturday, August 24 when there are just two games — ESPN, whose parent company is Disney, will broadcast from the Magic Kingdom Park at Walt Disney World in Orlando. It’s ahead of the first game of the season, Miami vs. Florida at Camping World Stadium, which is only a few miles away from Disney’s resort.
This seems like not a terrible idea at first, right? Lee Corso would pair perfectly with Mickey Mouse for a cheesy segment about football while more-tame-than-typical fans cheer in the background.
College GameDay✔@CollegeGameDay
Hey Coach, where are you going for Week 0?
5,773
1:30 PM - Aug 13, 2019
Twitter Ads info and privacy
1,125 people are talking about this
The problem is the fan experience for this show sounds awful.
First, signs — which are more synonymous with College GameDaythan anything else — are not allowed. That’s a Disney World rule, and similarly, things like banners, flags, horns, whistles and artificial noise makers are also prohibited.
OK, fine, whatever. But fans with tickets to the Saturday night game can still show up and make a ton of noise in the background, right?
Of course they can, but for the price of admission to the theme park, which is famously expensive. So that means for adults looking to attend GameDay at Disney, tickets for the Magic Kingdom on a Saturday are $133 — and $127 for kids.
But that’s not all.
There is no real access to the commentators or GameDay set for fans on site. According to ESPN’s fan guide, those in attendance “may catch a glimpse of the live broadcast as it takes place at the elevated train station on Main Street, U.S.A.” — which may or may not be close to the set.
So, to recap: If you want to attend the first College GameDay broadcast, it’ll cost more than $100 — more than $250 if you don’t want to go alone — you can’t bring a sign or flag and you can watch the show from a train station inside the Magic Kingdom that’s an unknown distance from the set.
Sounds like a great way to ensure people don’t show up.
The sea of rowdy fans with their energy and chants and face paint and signs and flags help make GameDay as a TV show. It’s entertaining and fun, and people watching at home love looking for the funniest/most insulting sign. For The Win writes about the signs every week because they’re usually hilarious.
But with the Week 0 broadcast set up, ESPN has stripped away a huge part of what college football fans love about the show.
But at least things will be back to normal for Week 1, when GameDaywill be at Clemson for the following Saturday for the defending champs’ opener against Georgia Tech.
