The World Cup match was broadcast live on Sky and ITV’s the Big Match brought highlights of the match to the public later that evening. The commentators in the studio were Bob Wilson, the ex-footballer and John Barnes. People commentating in the match were Kevin Keegan and Brian Moore. Radio Five commentary was broadcast live by Mike Ingham and Alan Green.
That day Dion Dublin also made his International debut for England. He was wearing the number 9 shirt. In the match against Chile, there were top international players like Ince, Shearer, Gasgoine and Southgate all on the bench ready to substitute their team mates. Hoddle was confident that England would win because that was the fifth time England met Chile and all the attempts Chile had made failed. But this time they had Marcello Salas and this man was their star forward. He was expected to sign the very next day for a huge fee in the region of £10-12 million to Lazio of Rome.
In that match, he proved himself and showed his great skills. He scored in the first half for Chile and finished it with a penalty in the second half.
The title sequence we watched lasted precisely forty-five seconds. It is divided neatly into two: The first fifteen seconds represents the programme title and the final thirty tell us that we’re about to watch highlights from England International match.
The title sequence begins with a flash of light and the pupil of an eye appears in the screen with ITV written on it. The camera starts to focus on the eye and the pupil turns to a football.
We see in the clip few colours but they are all used effectively and really show well what they are trying to show. The main three colours we see are red, blue and white. The red and white colours we see are used because they are the colours that make up the England flag and the Union Jack. Blue is used as well because that is also the main colour in the Union Jack.
When we watched the clip, it appeared to be very bland. Only parts of significance are in true colour. E.g. players and the ball. When the camera goes to the crowd, we only see two main colours and a lot of darkness. We see white and red on their faces and then just their clothes as a dark grey/black. This brings out their faces and shows football colours.
Graphics are used in the sequence, especially at the beginning and the end. The graphics were mainly lettering and was all red to represent England. The colour red is very bright and brings attention to the sequence on a dark, featureless background. We also see a big Red Cross to end the first fifteen seconds and as it fades, the cross becomes broken up and leaves the screen in different directions. Lots of modern special effects and visual images give the image a really exciting look.
Throughout the clip, there are the special effects and visual images. We see computer graphics used to blend and fade colours, slow motion to help the viewer get a better picture of the fast sequences, the red heart beating football and a pupil of an eye slowly but unnoticeably turning to a football. Before you know it, a football player kicks the ball and this is the point where the final thirty seconds begins.
As we watch the clip, we see that there are clips not only from the Chile match, but also from previous international matches. We see magical moments from different players as they put the football into the goal with a header, a left footer or a volley. But this didn’t all happen in thirty seconds. It could have happened over a period of two years. But by using special effects and computer technology, it has been possible to integrate the moments together and put them into a short burst of football action. None of this was possible fifteen years ago.
Some of the main players we see include Michael Owen, Alan Shearer, Dion Dublin and Teddy Sheringham. But they all did the same thing. Put a football into a goal. Owen was England’s youngest player of the century since Duncan Edwards in 1955. This World Cup, Dion Dublin was there and he was England’s joker in the pack. He was an unproven man.
As we watch England’s top players score, we immediately see another goal and if you blink, you miss a top quality goal from a top quality player. We see lots of team support and celebration as player’s score. The jump, shout, sit and the sequence continues to roll on.
But there is not just silence as the clip goes on. We hear crowds shouting and a piece of music called Jerusalem. This just plays in the background and when the crowd cheers, it’s just silenced out. But Jerusalem isn’t the starting piece. The first fifteen seconds is loud, fast and energetic music that doesn’t give the impression that a slow and quiet piece of music is about to be played.
Throughout the sequence we see repeated images but from different angles. There are cameras that sit behind the goal ready to catch any shots and cameras that focus on the crowd. By using Technology, music can also have special effects like fading from one piece to another.
