TVSquad

One of the long-time staples on cable has been The Soup (formerly Talk Soup) on E!. What started as a spoof of the various bizarre and goofy talk shows that permeated the airwaves throughout the '90s was reborn as a show that makes fun of all things television and pop culture now. Now the brand is seeking to expand to provide the same brand of satire and commentary to the sports world. Sister network Versus will air Sports Soup twice a week beginning October 14th, 2008. Of course, as with Joel McHale on The Soup the success of its new sister show will rest solely on the shoulders of its host, Matt Iseman.

In looking at Iseman's Wiki entry, it looks like this show was originally branded After Further Review. I guess they thought associating it with an already successful show with a similar format would improve its ratings. The network is still trying to establish itself as a viable sports brand in the ESPN world. Adding a show like this might be just the thing they need to drum up some buzz.

Certainly there's as much fodder for shenanigans and jokes in the world of sports celebrities as there is in LA. And sports fans are even more fanatical about their "relationships" with their favorite athletes than your typical television and movie celebrity fans. Hell, if the show were on now they could probably fill an entire half hour looking at what a tremendously awful job Michael Phelps did hosting SNL's premiere.