Sky Sports Fire Mark Bolton (Spanish Soccer)

Uncle Mclovin

He announced his disparture from Sky Sports via twitter yesterday.

http://twitter.com/#!/BoltonMark


I'm disappointed to here it. I always thought he was one of Skys better presenters. Himself and Balague worked very well together and Revista was a great show despite the time allocated to showing actual match highlights.


According to some lad over on football 365 he was sacked because he tweeted during the champions league final that it should be the Spanish Football pundits who should be working on the final instead of Redknapp and the likes.

gimmick

Uncle Mclovin wrote: »

According to some lad over on football 365 he was sacked because he tweeted during the champions league final that it should be the Spanish Football pundits who should be working on the final instead of Redknapp and the likes.

He said, among other things, during the CL semi

"top ties are really important"

He knew what eh was doing, as I am sure he is not so stupid as to think Sky, or any other employer, would take a public mockery lying down.

Shame, he is an excellent presenter on Revista. But given the circumstances, he can have no complaints.

GavRedKing

Uncle Mclovin wrote: »

He announced his disparture from Sky Sports via twitter yesterday.

http://twitter.com/#!/BoltonMark


I'm disappointed to here it. I always thought he was one of Skys better presenters. Himself and Balague worked very well together and Revista was a great show despite the time allocated to showing actual match highlights.


According to some lad over on football 365 he was sacked because he tweeted during the champions league final that it should be the Spanish Football pundits who should be working on the final instead of Redknapp and the likes.

Hes right though, the biased towards United when watching that " punditry " was bizarre.

sure the lads praised Messi and Xavi but it was the Man Utd love in featuring 4 guys and some Spanish team.

What they needed was a bit of balance and it should have been Hunter, Bolton or Balague also on the panel to give their view and opinions, poor decision by Sky but what would ya expect.

Helix

failing to renew someones contract does not mean you fired them

sensationalist much?

Jax Teller

Sure he'll get a job on talksport.

Uncle Mclovin

Helix wrote: »

failing to renew someones contract does not mean you fired them

sensationalist much?

Sensationalist much???? God thats annoying.


Will I change the title of thread for you? Will that please you much?

dagdha

Thats a shame, I always thought he was pretty good and had a good working relationship with the rest of the lads on the show, it was pretty light hearted at times.

I think it was the Revista episode prior to the Champions League final where he was talking to Hunter on the screen and he said something at the end of the conversation such as "alright Graham we'll see you here for the final with Patrick (Kluivert I presume)" and then he turned to the camera and said something along the lines of "don't forget to join us here for the final" he might of meant us as in SKY but the way he siad it I presumed that the Revista crowd would have an on air presence for the final and I was delighted.

Correct me if I'm wrong but I think that even for the Copa del Rey final Sky did'nt use the Revista studio panel that they normally use for normal La Liga games.

Zebra3

Excellent presenter.

Really disappointed he won't be fronting La Liga coverage any more.

dfx-

He mentioned it at the start of the month that he wouldn't be renewing his contract, but nothing about being sacked.

He worked well on the show. Had his opinions and was open to being wrong and remind others when they were wrong.....

Dolph Starbeam

Disappointed to hear this news, he was a good presenter on Revista, was a good mix of light hearted banter but serious when it needed to be, it will be interesting to see who Sky replace him with.

dagdha

There is a rumour going around that Sky are trying to replace him with Eamonn Dunphy. Sky think that Dunphy is the ideal man to replace Mark Bolton because of his in-depth knowledge of the Spanish League.:pac:

MisterAnarchy

Typical Sky bull**** decision to axe him.
He was one of the few presenters on their channels that actually had some personality and he had a good relationship with Balague,Gibbo ,Armstrong and Hunter .
They werent afraid to call a spade a spade unlike the gob****e puppet pundits on the EPL coverage .
They had some good insight into tactics and team news ,something that I liked.
It was probably too high brow for Skys liking .

Bolton was going a bit overboard with his comments on Real Madrids anti football at the end of April and got a bit personal against Mourinho but I'm sure it was just a wind up.

Maybe he was looking for too much money for a new contract and got too big for his boots ?
Its the best job on tv ,hosting the Spanish football,I might apply.:)

Bodhisopha

Aww bollocks. He was the best presenter on Sky Sports.

They better not replace him with Rob Wooton or Rob Palmer.

gimmick

MisterAnarchy wrote: »

Typical Sky bull**** decision to axe him.

Maybe he was looking for too much money for a new contract and got too big for his boots ?
Its the best job on tv ,hosting the Spanish football,I might apply.:)

If you had a high profile job, and you posted stuff on twitter to make your employer look silly, would you expect to keep your job?

He was a great presenter for Sky, but Im afraid he was the master of his own destiny here.

Bodhisopha

gimmick wrote: »

He said, among other things, during the CL semi

"top ties are really important"

He knew what eh was doing, as I am sure he is not so stupid as to think Sky, or any other employer, would take a public mockery lying down.

Shame, he is an excellent presenter on Revista. But given the circumstances, he can have no complaints.

I don't get it.

flahavaj

Bodhisopha wrote: »

I don't get it.

Jamie says "top" a lot.

fortuneg

Bodhisopha wrote: »

I don't get it.

Sounds like a top reference to Jamie 'Literally' Redknapp to me!

Uncle Mclovin

Bodhisopha wrote: »

I don't get it.

I think it was a dig at Redknapp. You know the way according to Jamie everyone is a "top fella", "top top player", "top top top guy", and so on.......



Or maybe I'm totally wrong in my interpretation.


Edit: I see we were all mad to answer that question.

gimmick

No, you are spot on. Jamie always has a tie on, and loves to say "top top". Bolton was pissed off with the fact that Redders was encroaching on his gig.

Dolph Starbeam

Bodhisopha wrote: »

I don't get it.

You're not the only one, if it was a dig at Jamie Redknapp saying top a lot then who cares, It's only a bit of banter, Sky really are gone to the dogs.

MisterAnarchy

gimmick wrote: »

If you had a high profile job, and you posted stuff on twitter to make your employer look silly, would you expect to keep your job?

Having read through all his twitter comments over the last 2 months,I didnt see any so called comments .
The only thing he is guilty of is being a huge Barca fan.
Typical Sky over reaction ,call the pc brigade.

gimmick

Mark! wrote: »

You're not the only one, if it was a dig at Jamie Redknapp saying top a lot then who cares, It's only a bit of banter, Sky really are gone to the dogs.

Litrelly Jamie is Skys golden boy. Maybe there is more to it, but if this is the onlyreason, I can see why Sky took the stand they did.

MisterAnarchy wrote: »

Having read through all his twitter comments over the last 2 months,I didnt see any so called comments .
The only thing he is guilty of is being a huge Barca fan.
Typical Sky over reaction ,call the pc brigade.

He deleted them. I saw them at the time.

MisterAnarchy

gimmick wrote: »

He deleted them. I saw them at the time.

Thats why I am not a fan of twitter,people can let themselves down by posting comments in the heat of the moment .Its a dangerous format.

Im surprised he has so many fans on here, his American style of presenting by looking straight at the camera just came across as creepy most of the time.
No one I know rated him, mainly because of his presenting style.

Third_Echelon

I liked his presenting style. Definitely one of the better presenters on Sky. Actually could hold down an intelligent football conversation with other panelists rather than the usual rubbish rolled out for Sky's premier league coverage...

UnitedIrishman

Was very good on Revista but comes across as a bit of a douche on Twitter.

His comments about Madrid and other sides that don't play football sounded very much like a football snob.

Mind you, don't know if he was steamed writing those tweets.

Zebra3

Halle Polite Shot-putter wrote: »

Im surprised he has so many fans on here, his American style of presenting by looking straight at the camera just came across as creepy most of the time.

parker kent

I didn't really like him, but in fairness he was better than a good few other English presenters (wouldn't be that difficult really though). His presenting style was just too in-your-face for my liking.

Although taking a pop at Jamie Redknapp has improved him in my eyes

He is/was no Jeff Stelling.

parker kent

dfx- wrote: »

He mentioned it at the start of the month that he wouldn't be renewing his contract, but nothing about being sacked.

This is on his Twitter:

I didn't ask to leave Sky Sports. They didn't want to re-new my contract. Ask them why?

Yes, Sky Sports axed me.

YES. I WAS AXED.

Why don't you believe me? I was axed by Sky Sports. I wanted to stay but they didn't want me.

Yes, I've loved presenting La Liga. And especially Revista. It wasn't my choice to leave.

Sky Sports told me Im "Very talented & excellent on screen" but that Im "Anti-authoritarian" & that they'd decided to not renew my contract.

Ronan Raver77

I liked his presentation style..tis a pity:o cue Gary Neville:D

~Rebel~

Christ, why can some people not just keep their mouths shut!? Talking about it publically like that, in print, viewable by the entire world, just justifies sky's position.

It also weakens his position when looking for a new job. Companies are going to be less likely to bring in someone who has the potential to present them in a bad light if things don't go their way.

He should be annoyed, but he should be moaning about it when having beers with his buddies, or with his family, not on a public forum.

MD1990

he was nearly crying on the last Revista show right at the start of the show

dfx-

parker kent wrote: »

This is on his Twitter:

I was referring to this one on 3 Jun:

After 6 years the season just past will be my final one presenting Spanish Football for Sky Sports. I will not be renewing my contract.

http://www.twitlonger.com/show/asmjkb

eagle eye

~Rebel~ wrote: »

Christ, why can some people not just keep their mouths shut!? Talking about it publically like that, in print, viewable by the entire world, just justifies sky's position.

It also weakens his position when looking for a new job. Companies are going to be less likely to bring in someone who has the potential to present them in a bad light if things don't go their way.

He should be annoyed, but he should be moaning about it when having beers with his buddies, or with his family, not on a public forum.

He won't have any problem getting another job. I expect ESPN to go after him and then go after the rights to La Liga when its up again.

He was my second favourite presenter on sky sports only behind the great Jeff Stelling on Soccer Saturday. I don't have Sky anymore, finally decided enough was enough when they sacked Andy Gray and Richard Keys. Its not about what they did either before people go off on a tangent. Its just that the other co-commentators are boring and the studio analysis is not as entertaining either. And also the fact that it was constructive dismissal imo and I detest people who do that.

Aidric

He definitely fancies himself which usually turns me right off but I make an exception with Bolton. He had a wonderful warmth and charm on screen, cheeky even, and is a large part of the success of Revista.

The fact that he had a pop at Redknapp only brightens his star in my eyes.

losthorizon

I'm interested in football so I dont have sky sports. Never heard of him

Bodhisopha

I noticed he was picking a lot of fights with his pundits on Revista in his last few shows. I thought it was a deliberate attempt to make the show a bit more confrontational a la RTE but maybe they were the actions of a man who knew he was on the way out.

Have to say, i liked it.

Edit: I also noticed he was getting a few digs in at those who thought the BPL was the better league. I doubt Sky take too kindly to that. The only reason they show La Liga is subscriptions. They definitely don't want it looking like the better product.

~Rebel~

losthorizon wrote: »

I'm interested in football so I dont have sky sports.

What?! Not liking sky coverage is one thing, but that's a bit of a ridiculous statement.

KeithAFC

Good news. Can't stand him and can't stand the other lot on that Spanish revista show about La Liga. Any moment a hint of having a go at La Liga is brought up, a lot of excuses and bull shi*ting is said and they move on.

kronsington

losthorizon wrote: »

I'm interested in football so I dont have sky sports. Never heard of him

what a truly moronic statement. get your head out of your ass, mate

cournioni

Bodhisopha wrote: »

Aww bollocks. He was the best presenter on Sky Sports.

They better not replace him with Rob Wooton or Rob Palmer.

What? That would be great...

v3ttel

I thought he was one of the better presenters, along with Jeff Stelling. Disappointed he didn't have his contract renewed. La Liga coverage probably won't be as good next season.

MisterAnarchy

Good article here on why Bolton will be missed.
http://www.wsc.co.uk/content/view/7353/38/

The departure of Mark Bolton from Sky Sports after his contract was not renewed sums up much of what is wrong with much of the coverage of football on television. Bolton hosted the network’s Spanish football broadcasts, Revista de la Liga, with Guillem Balague for the past six years and the pair’s easy chemistry made watching the show a much more pleasurable experience than its Premier League equivalent, Match of the Day. Bolton, Balague and regular guest Graham Hunter had a depth of knowledge of their topic unmatched by the rest of the pundits on television.

There were no Alan Shearer-style “he’ll be disappointed with that” moments here, instead an unashamed delight in the minutiae of La Liga, from Barcelona on down. The conversation was intelligent, mature and at times – whisper it – genuinely funny, Bolton’s links a far cry from Gary Lineker’s show-ending puns. Compared to the increasingly nauseating 19th hole of the golf course that has become Match of the Day, Revista was something to look forward to.

You could reasonably expect to learn something from watching, be it the latest transfer news from the well-connected Balague and Hunter, informed discussion of a team’s tactics and selection or an opposing viewpoint to the consensus. Revista was a show for people who were genuinely interested in football outside of the screaming Premier League or soul-destroying Champions League, who cared about the game more than every four years during a dismal World Cup, and who wanted coverage to match.

Instead, while James Richardson is consigned to the Guardian’s Football Weekly podcast, we are left with Lineker’s smugness, the bumbling Adrian Chiles on ITV and a revolving cast of interchangeable Sky Sports News presenters. The monotony of the latter is broken only by Jeff Stelling, but even he loses some of his zest when transported from the Soccer Saturday boys’ club to a live Champions League broadcast.

Then there is Colin Murray, victim of a humour-bypass when swapping the Radio 5 Live studio for Match of the Day 2, and amiable old uncle Ray Stubbs on ESPN. Stubbs is the forefather of the bland Sky Sports News roster that now populates the airwaves. The vacuous horror of Ben Shepherd, meanwhile, is just too grim a prospect to consider.

Revista was a ray of sunshine in a dark world, a place to escape the inanity that has pervaded football discussion on television, as much the fault of the medium as the channels themselves. By chasing away the broadcasters that could offer a deeper analysis of events, the channels that cover football are perpetuating a banal status quo. Andrew Tuft

Le King

Bring Mark Bolton back, I liked RDLL and get some Italian football and put James Richardson all over it and I'll get Sky again.

Oat23

I only got Sky right after the season ended and I watched the last episode of RDLL where they gave out their team of the year. I was very impressed with it and I thought they 3 lads, Bolton, Ballague and the other guy(I think he was bald) worked great together.

Such a shame that Bolton was let go . I probably would have watched it all next season but I don't think I'll bother now.

MarkY91

he looks like bear grylls imo

Dolph Starbeam

Oatesy23 wrote: »

I was very impressed with it and I thought they 3 lads, Bolton, Ballague and the other guy(I think he was bald) worked great together.

The bald fella would have been Graham Hunter, knows his stuff and is always in the know of what is going on behind the scenes. Hunter and Ballague are very good but Bolton will be hugely missed.

Jayob10

sad to see the fella lose his job, but all this nonsense about revisita not being as good anymore, get real FFS. I was under the impression that people watched it for the football, not the witty boll*xing of a male model turned journalist turned football presenter.

Spanish football is excellent therefore I couldn't really give a toss what changes so long as they keep showing the highlights of what goes on in the week of Spanish football.

Too many people wish to be entertained at half time and told what to think in relation what they have seen for themselves. Then again i'm from the school of watching a match with my own eyes and then tuning back in for the second half rather than listen to the mumblings of some cardboard cut out, hack journalist or brain dead ex pro tell me what I was supposed to have seen myself for the previous 45 mins.

Having said all that, Jeff Stelling is superb on soccer saturday as there is the physical requirement to tell folk what is going on, and he does that brilliantly.
Anything else is just a prop in fairness.

kfallon

No loss tbh, never could stand him. Smarmy beyond belief and I remember him hosting the Soccer AM sports show thingy on a Friday night and it was cringeworthy, fake laughter, crap jokes etc.

Sky is about watching football, not listening to moronic analysis. Super Sunday goes like this for me:

3.58 Turn on Sky Sports for match
4.46 Turn off Sky for half time
5.01 Turn back on Sky for 2nd half
5.50 Turn off Sky at final whistle

That routine goes for any live match they are showing, just adjust the times. RDLL was watched only if I missed the Real or Barca games at the weekend, I only ever wanted to see the goals, nothing else!

Blatter

He was far too biased towards Barca and anti Madrid to be the presenter of a La Liga program.

kfallon

Blatter wrote: »

He was far too biased towards Barca and anti Madrid to be the presenter of a La Liga program.

I wouldn't know tbh, I never listened to him!