So far it’s kind of been a summer of blue balls, as far as big transfers go. Lots of talk but not that much delivery. Well, except for the French teams, or at least the 2 of them with access to delicious oil money. In the Premier League it’ll likely be all about the Big 4 again, though the final ranking is quite uncertain (note: unsure if Arsenal or Tott'num ((c) Ted Lasso) is in that group now). Slight edge to Chelsea just on the strength of their coaching change? City fans might disagree. Meanwhile La Liga is getting even more lopsided, as depressing as that is. Outside of the big 2 the whole league was a net seller transfer-wise, which at least point to the fact that the clubs are getting serious about their debts. Which is great news for EPL clubs looking for Michu-type undervalued assets that can contribute right away. Ligue 1 looks like it could be a runaway race between 2 teams as well, but I wouldn’t be shocked if a Marseille or Lyon inserted themselves into the discussion. Meanwhile the cool kids of Serie A will be fashionably late to the party and start their season next week.

Also we finally get to see how well NBC is gonna do by their fancy EPL contract. All games available one way or another, with the ManU game shown on national TV, and a Match of the Day recap show on Sat night… I, for one, welcome our new soccer TV overlords.

EPL
SATURDAY, AUGUST 17, 2013
7:45 ET Liverpool v Stoke City
10:00 ET Arsenal v Aston Villa
10:00 ET Norwich City v Everton
10:00 ET Sunderland v Fulham
10:00 ET West Bromwich Albion v Southampton
10:00 ET West Ham United v Cardiff City
12:30 ET Swansea City v Manchester United

SUNDAY, AUGUST 18, 2013
8:30 ET Crystal Palace v Tottenham Hotspur
11:00 ET Chelsea v Hull City

MONDAY, AUGUST 19, 2013
3:00 ET Manchester City v Newcastle United

La Liga
SATURDAY, AUGUST 17, 2013
1:00 ET Real Sociedad v Getafe
3:00 ET Real Valladolid v Athletic Bilbao
5:00 ET Valencia v Malaga
SUNDAY, AUGUST 18, 2013
1:00 ET Barcelona v Levante
3:00 ET Osasuna v Granada
3:00 ET Real Madrid v Real Betis
5:00 ET Sevilla FC v Atletico Madrid
MONDAY, AUGUST 19, 2013
2:00 ET Rayo Vallecano v Elche
4:00 ET Almeria v Villarreal
4:00 ET Celta Vigo v Espanyol

Bundesliga
SATURDAY, AUGUST 17, 2013
9:30 ET Eintracht Frankfurt v Bayern Munich
9:30 ET Hamburg SV v TSG Hoffenheim
9:30 ET SC Freiburg v Mainz
9:30 ET VfB Stuttgart v Bayer Leverkusen
9:30 ET VfL Wolfsburg v Schalke 04
9:30 ET Werder Bremen v FC Augsburg
12:30 ET Borussia Monchengladbach v Hannover 96

Ligue1
SUNDAY, AUGUST 18, 2013
9:30 ET Nurnberg v Hertha Berlin
11:30 ET Borussia Dortmund v TSV Eintracht Braunschweig

FRIDAY, AUGUST 16, 2013
2:30 ET Sochaux v Lyon

SATURDAY, AUGUST 17, 2013
11:00 ET Marseille v Evian Thonon Gaillard
2:00 ET Bastia v Valenciennes
2:00 ET Nice v Stade Rennes
2:00 ET St Etienne v Guingamp
2:00 ET Stade de Reims v Lille
2:00 ET Toulouse v Bordeaux

SUNDAY, AUGUST 18, 2013
8:00 ET AS Monaco v Montpellier
11:00 ET Lorient v Nantes
3:00 ET Paris Saint-Germain v AC Ajaccio

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For the record, my teams:
MLB: Mets / Soccer: PSG
NCAA BB: Arizona / NCAA FB: Michigan
NBA: Spurs / NFL: Jets