Stephen A. Smith may be one of the leading sports analysts in America, but he proved he is way out of his depth when it comes to the World Cup.
The ESPN star was discussing the tournament on Wednesday’s edition of ‘First Take’, which came amid reports of rising tensions between his network and World Cup broadcasters Fox.
Smith, who usually analyzes and offers razor sharp opinions on the NBA and NFL for ESPN, questioned whether France will finally win the World Cup this time around.
But the French have famously won the World Cup twice, including eight years ago in Russia in 2018. With a dangerous attack led by Kylian Mbappe, France are once again among the favourites this time around.
Smith said: ‘Really, for me, it’s about Mbappe for France. He scored two goals yesterday, he scored hat-trick in the final when they lost to Argentina (in 2022).
‘I’m wondering whether or not this is the year for France. I’m thinking about France because of Wemby (Victor Wembanyama) and how he just went home in the NBA Finals.
Stephen A. Smith made a comical mistake when trying to analyze the World Cup on ESPN
France have already won the World Cup twice and are among the favorites to win it again
‘I’m wondering what France is going to do. Could this be the year that they finally get it done and they win the World Cup, considering what we saw Mbappe do yesterday and what we know he’s capable of.’
Viewers did not hold back on social media and blasted Smith, who earns $20million a year.
One sarcastic viewer commented: ‘This is the elite journalism and coverage we have come to expect from @ESPN. Once the worldwide leader in sports highlights and elite punditry, now just a talk show slowly deteriorating towards “The View”.’
Another posted: ‘Someone tell @StephenASmith to not talk about things he doesn’t know about. Let the experts talk about the World Cup.’
A third replied: ‘Ladies and gentlemen: the highest paid sports reporter, err analyst, err “personality” in America’.
‘This is what I always tell folks. Don’t be the person who thinks you can comment on everything. You have you niche. Stick to it,’ another insisted.
Another commented: ‘This is the thing about Stephen A. Let him talk about basketball. He’s embarrassing when he steps out.’
‘This is crazy,’ another declared, before adding: ‘France won in 2018 and were finalists beaten on penalties in 2022. What does he mean could this be the year? You can tell they are just covering soccer because it’s in the US. My guy doesn’t know anything about football.’
According to a report by Front Office Sports on Tuesday, Fox executives were said to be unhappy with the lack of attention their TV rival is giving the tournament across its biggest shows.
Fox and FS1 has exclusive rights to every single World Cup game in America after paying $485 million to FIFA. They took over as rights holder from ESPN in 2018.
They are said to be particularly unhappy with ESPN’s indifferent response to the USMNT’s thumping 4-1 win over Paraguay on Friday.
Mauricio Pochettino’s team enjoyed the perfect start to the tournament on home soil, destroying the South Americans in what Fox analyst Alexi Lalas described on air as ‘the perfect game’.
But Fox executives believe they saw very little coverage of the game by ESPN. ‘We’re talking about a historic performance by Team USA. Where in the hell was ESPN?’ one source questioned.
Fox have since rubbished any notion of a feud, with a spokesman saying: ‘This is simply not true.
‘We are focused on our own coverage of the biggest event in the world, not on what others choose to air. And frankly, it’s insulting to ESPN to suggest they would pass on covering it. This is all absurd.’
