Oh, this is too good

Okay, I think this is the most ridiculous, most hilariously unique thing I've seen so far here in Buenos Aires.

I'm flippin' channels on the cable TV, going through the five sports channels because I know there was a tennis tournament today, and I see that two of the five channels are broadcasting the same Boca Juniors game. Boca Juniors are one of the two big local futbol (soccer) teams, the other being River Plate. Nice names, huh?

On both channels, they're showing the score and the time remaining in a box up top, and they're panning around the stadium, showing fans, going nuts as they always are. And on both channels the announcers are doing the play-by-play in spanish, with the usual ups and downs of the game -- the announcers always getting more excited as the ball gets down by the goal.

OK, here's the good part -- both channels just keep moving the camera around the crowd, they don't show the game at all. Even when the announcers are going nuts, the camera is just panning around the stadium. On both channels.

So, clearly, neither of these channels had the right to broadcast the game. But somehow, they have the right to broadcast shots of the stadium and play-by-play. But the really amazing thing is, they put this on TV, and people must watch it. And enough people watch it that they play it on two channels!

So they love their futbol.

And also, I guess, maybe this shows that the fan experience, the group nuttiness going on in the stands, must be a big part of the appeal of the game. I'm sure this is true with football fans in the states and soccer fans all over the world, but where else do they play the game on TV without showing the game?

UPDATE -- one week later

Right now there are two stations playing today's game involving River Plate, the other big futbol team in town. And, sure enough, they are not showing the game, just the fans in the stadium. Two channels, again. This is the weirdest thing ever, if you ask me.

UPDATE -- on hour later

OK, River game is over, now the Boca game is on. And once again, they are not showing the game, only the fans in the stadium. This game is only one one channel, for what it's worth. So clearly this is something pretty normal, at least here.

LAST UPDATE

Pato, my spanish teacher, confirmed that this happens because the cable companies have "premium" sports channels that broadcast the actual games. No surprise there, I guess. But still I think it's hilarious that there's enough interest to sustain two stations showing nothing but the stands for the whole game.