The BBC is doing a fantastic job at opening up its lines of communication and giving visitors an inside look at how their Sport web site delivers news.

Ian Westbrook from the BBC was kind enough to explain how their Sport department puts together the news. Read the fascinating description from Westbrook here.

Speaking of the BBC, stay tuned to this blog and the EPL Talk Podcast for news on my upcoming interview which will appear on BBC television.

To me, one of the most exciting things about the summer is waiting for the new Premiership kits to be unveiled. These days, the kit launches are a big marketing campaign with press conferences and photographers.

But the most interesting story is that of Manchester United. The team has already announced that they're changing the design of their kits this upcoming season (except for the blue strip, which will stay the same), but the new strip hasn't been unveiled yet and the shirt is already clouded in mystery.

Is it the one featured above? It looks authentic (except, of course, for the addition of the new sponsor's name - AIG). I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Meanwhile, I recently launched a new page where you can buy your Official World Cup Shirts. Visit http://www.squidoo.com/worldcupshirts for an excellent selection and great prices. All of the shirts are listed on one page, making it easier for you to find what you want.

The Treble, those three glorious women who are passionate soccer fans, have moved from the World Soccer Daily radio network to a new network run by The 2 G's.

The news is one of the highlights of this week's EPL Talk Podcast, featuring an interview with Graham Bell from The 2 G's. During the episode, Bell discusses growing up in England, how The 2 G's got started, his most memorable moment on his show thus far and what plans he has for the upcoming network he's preparing to launch.

You can listen to the EPL Talk Podcast here, or you can download it from iTunes.

A slow week for good posts, largely because I've been spending most nights writing article after article for the next issue of the EPL Talk Magazine.

Thankfully I've been able to continue writing with one eye on my laptop, and the other eye on the television. For example, watching today's England v Belarus friendly on Fox Soccer Channel.

What impressed me the most was the venom in the English attacks as Aaron Lennon completely tore past defenders down the right wing. What's sad, though, is that Lennon won't get a chance to play on the right wing during the World Cup unless he comes on as a sub or if Beckham gets injured.

This is one of the reasons why I believe both England and Brazil will be hampered during this summer's World Cup. A national team manager who doesn't have the chutzpah to bench his famous but not-in-form players is destined for failure. Brazil will be "forced" into playing the past-their-sell-date Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos. And England will play Beckham no matter what.

Starting next season, Premiership referees and assistant referees will be wearing new head-set technology.

To me, this is an excellent step in the right direction. The technology won't interfere with the game. Plus, if anything, it's going to speed up the referee's decisionmaking process by allowing assistant referees to speak with referees directly (rather than waiting for the ref to run over to the touchline and listen to the assistant ref).

It makes you wonder what other technology may be in store for the Premiership. This one, in my opinion, is a welcome addition.

After watching them clobber Crystal Palace in the Championship play-off match a couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that Watford would be a welcome addition to the Premiership.

Now, after yesterday's fantastic Championship play-off final win against Leeds, the Hornets from Hertfordshire are now the final third team to make it to the EPL (along with Reading and Sheffield United).

Interestingly I spoke with my cousin, and huge Leeds fans, after the match. Kevin's insight (who lives in London) was that Leeds went out and started the match in a very defensive formation. In final matches like these, you simply can't sit back and hope to hold on to a slight win. It's all or nothing, and Leeds were unable to stop Watford's direct approach. Final score was 3-0 to the team that was famous in the 70s for their chairman (Elton John).

Welcome aboard Watford. I, for one, will look forward to seeing them make an impression on the Premiership.

Alas, it wasn't Arsenal or England's night tonight as Barcelona won the Champions League Final 2-1 with two late goals.

Highlights of the match included Henry's dazzling run down the left wing which left Puyol and Marquez looking like amateurs.

At the end of the day, it was Arsenal reserve goalkeeper Almunia who gifted the match to the team from Catalonia making two basic goalkeeping errors.

Now, it's time to look forward to the World Cup which is less than 28 days away.

In just a few hours, the answers will be revealed to these very interesting questions:

(1) Can the Premiership or La Liga claim to being the best club league in the world? If Arsenal wins, surely the Premier League is it.

(2) Does Arsenal have what it takes to outplay and outwit Barcelona? If so, Wenger would assuredly be a better tactician than Jose Mourinho since the Blues lost to the Spaniards in the quarter final.

(3) If Barcelona beat Arsenal, will this increase the confidence and likelihood that Spain will do better in this World Cup than in previous tournaments?

(4) Will we avoid any crucial injuries to World Cup stars in today's match? And lastly...

(5) If Arsenal win, will this go down as their greatest achievement ever?

This promises to be either one of the most exciting finals in years (if an early goal is scored). Or one of the most boring ones. The first 10 minutes are crucial for both teams, especially Arsenal. I can't wait!

I had an interesting conversation with GolTV commentator Phil Schoen this past week (available as episode 7 on the EPL Talk Podcast).

We discussed whether it was better for Arsenal to employ the tactics they did in their second leg match versus Villarreal, or if they should come out from the gates blazing to score that crucial first goal.

If you're not aware, Phil Schoen has been a devout Arsenal fan since the 1970's, so it was interesting to hear his perspective, and to also gain some insight into his memories of Highbury.

Phil Schoen knows his football. If you get a chance, watch his weekly show on GolTV entitled "American Soccer." It's on every Wednesday at 8pm ET.

According to Box Office Mojo, Goal! The Dream Begins ended its first weekend with an estimated $2 million at 1,007 venues. "Soccer movies have never been particularly successful in America, and this one will go down as the least popular among those released nationwide," said the online movie box office site.

GOAL: The Movie brought in an estimated $675,000 on its opening day in the United States. The Buena Vista movie tells the story of a Mexican immigrant who's spotted by a football scout in Los Angeles and makes the journey to play for Newcastle United in the Premiership.

Despite the fact that GOAL: The Movie is only on 1,007 screens in America, the film had the eighth highest movie gross on Friday according to Box Office Mojo.

New film Poseidon was the number two film surpassed by the popular Mission Impossible 3 film.

I tried listening to the FA Cup Final via the internet today, but didn't have too much luck. First BBC Five Live had the pre-match build up but they broke in with their "We're sorry, but due to contractual obligations, we're unable to bring today's event to you" message. Damn!

I switched to the BBC World Service over the internet and managed to listen to the first ten minutes of the match before they switched mid-sentence to a boring radio documentary.

So I resorted to enduring the BBC text commentary from their web site, which is an agonizing way to follow the match but better than nothing indeed.

During the second half, I decided to listen to the BBC Scotland radio commentary and watch the BBC text commentary at the same time. BBC Scotland were broadcasting the Scottish Cup final live between Hearts and Gretna, which was equally as exciting as the Liverpool match. And the Scots broke in a couple of times with the scoreline from the Liverpool and West Ham final.

When the FA Cup Final went to penalty kicks, I went back to BBC Five Live and decided to try my luck. Thankfully the live broadcast was on and I was able to hear Jose Reina saving the Anton Ferdinand penalty kick which clinched the Cup final win for the Reds!

Commiserations to both West Ham and Gretna who both came so close to stunning the world and almost beating the favorites. Both finals seemed to be full of excitement.

Looking ahead, if Arsenal can beat Barcelona, this'll mean that the top four teams in England will have each won a trophy (Chelsea: Premiership trophy; Man United: Carling Cup; Liverpool, FA Cup; and Arsenal: Possible Champions League trophy winners).

Today's guest blog posting is from South Florida resident and Newcastle United fan Bruce Gottesman. While Newcastle will be burned on the retinas of anyone watching "GOAL: The Movie" that debuts across the US on Friday May 12, Bruce has thoughts on other issues important to the Toon:

Not sure if it qualifies as a miracle, but what a job by Roeder. And without Owen or Parker. Yeah, Chelsea sent out their reserves, but the Newcastle side wasn't exactly their first choice squad either. And to think that Titus Bramble of all people was the hero on both ends of the pitch!

So, on to next season. A tie against an over-matched side in the Intertoto should put Newcastle into the UEFA Cup, and anticipation of same should allow the Mags to add a few players, especially since Shearer is off the books. So, where to look?

Striker is an obvious need, and not just because Shearer's retired. With Owen a constant injury risk, all they have is Shola Ameobi and Rocky Chopra. While Van Nistelrooy would be cool, I doubt he'll stay in England if he leaves ManU (what the heck happened there? Jeez). How about Andy Johnson? I read where Palace may not be able to keep Johnson, and we sure could use him.

Like to see Leeds back up - good club, great history, Eddie Lewis joining the Americans of Reading into the Premiership. And Watford didn't do anything when they were up a few years ago...

Is David Beckham coming back to England? With the departure of Jenas I believe Newcastle have the #7 shirt open. Kidding - of course he'd play in London, maybe Spurs, if he came back. Though it might be interesting teaming him with England teammates Dyer and Owen...

With no Premiership games on TV this past Saturday, I had the pleasure of watching the first leg of the Championship semi-final playoff between Crystal Palace and Watford.

As is often the case in football, it was a tale of two halves. Palace dominated the first half and looked unlucky not to open the scoring. At half time, I was already predicting Watford's demise.

However the second half was a completely different game with Watford scoring three scintilating goals -- all of them worthy of being considered as possible goals of the season! Watford completely tore Palace apart, shocking both the players and fans with their amazing talent (especially from former Nottingham Forest player Marlon King).

Based on Watford's second half performance, they would be a welcome addition to the Premiership with sublime skills and a manager (Adrian Boothroyd) with a good head on his shoulders.

The second leg of the semi-final will be played today with Watford hoping that their home advantage will make a big difference. The winner will play Leeds United in the final to decide who will be promoted to the Premiership next year.

While much of the focus last week was on Setanta winning rights to two of the six UK Premiership TV packages (and Sky securing the remaining four), now is a good time to consider how much money the Premiership will make from the deal.

Consider these stats (courtesy of the Independent newspaper from England):

1. The Premiership will earn a staggering 1.7 billion pound deal from its live UK TV rights in the three seasons from 2007-08 onwards.

2. Those earnings represents a 67% increase compared to what the League earned the last time the rights were sold.

3. The avalanche of new cash (reportedly 13 million pound per team) will fuel an upsurge in spending on transfers and wages.

4. Sky will pay 4.76 million pounds for each of its games.

5. The highest-earning club will see its income from Premier League TV money alone jump towards 50 million pounds a year, while the bottom club will be guaranteed at least 25 million pounds.

6. When revenue from highlights and foreign rights' are added, the Premier League expects to make around 2.3 billion pounds in total from TV and other broadcast media in the three years from 2007. I'll say that again: 2.3 billion pounds.

Money talks, so after this World Cup expect a flood of foreign talent to enter the Premiership. This is where the money is and this is where the best foreign stars in the world will be going.

What a day. What a season!

The magnificent open match between Arsenal amd Wigan was a beautiful 90 minutes to watch. Arsenal were top class, both on and off the pitch. From the red, white and blue "I Was There" T-shirts to the boisterous singing from the Arsenal fans, today's match was a storybook finale for Highbury.

This is why I love the Premiership so much. The passion, the scintilating skills on the field, the history, the speed and physicality, and the competiveness.

As if this wasn't enough, the excitement was heightened by witnessing how the fans reacted to the West Ham versus Spurs match being played at the same time.

And then, of course, there were plenty of goals in the other matches. 23 in fact, and a total of 29 on closing day. Farewell the 2005-2006 season, and bring on the next one!

Guest blog entry from The Scout:

Van Nistelrooy Exits
by The Scout

Ruud van Nistelrooy drove away from Manchester United's final game of the season against Charlton Athletic when he learned that he would be once again left out of the starting eleven.

One of the most prolific scorers in Red Devil history, the Dutchman was suspected to be playing his last game at Old Trafford as his relationship with the team has taken a downward turn since he was left out of the starting line-up for the Carling Cup final. Louis Saha has often been preferred to van Nistelrooy which have fueled rumours that a summer move is on the cards.

United posted an article on their website confirming that the
29-year-old left the ground ahead of the clash with Charlton, handing
Giuseppe Rossi his first start in the Premiership alongside Louis
Saha. Manager Sir Alex Ferguson was quoted in the article as saying
"There have been a couple of issues during the week that concerned me
in terms of the spirit at the club. On such an important day, I just
felt that Ruud should be left out."

"It's straightforward," he added. "We'll be discussing it with the
club's directors tomorrow and Tuesday and that's it."

Speculation has linked van Nistelrooy with former club PSV Eindhoven
as well as AC Milan and Real Madrid.

There's an interesting article on This Is Anfield about how the SkySports and Setanta deals with the Premiership will change the traditional 3pm kickoff in England (10am ET).

Even though the overseas rights to the Premiership have yet to be decided, one impact on international viewers from the UK TV rights deal is how many matches will kick off at different times from the 2007 season (if shown live).

For example, Setanta’s matches will be shown at 3pm ET on Monday, Saturday at 12:15pm ET and Sunday at 8:30am ET.

Meanwhile, each season SkySports will be showing:

23 matches at 11am ET on Sunday
23 matches shown at 8:30am ET on Sunday
23 matches shown at 7:45am ET on Saturday
7 to 13 matches on midweek evenings/bank holidays,
10 to 16 at 7:45am ET on Saturday and 11am ET on Sunday.

In breaking news, Setanta has won the bids for two of the six Premiership TV rights packages, with Sky picking up the remaining four.

This means that from 2007-2010, Sky will show 92 live matches while Setanta will show 46.

Overseas rights are yet to be finalized, but the repercussions of the above decisions will definitely impact watching the EPL on TV in North America.

Today, we have a guest blog entry from Canadian Lonnie Smetana about London team Queens Park Rangers -- currently in the Championship. This one is a classic (thanks Lonnie):

QPR boardroom scene like gangster movie, court told

LONDON, May 4 (Reuters) - Queens Park Rangers chairman Gianni Paladini was threatened with a gun in a boardroom battle that resembled a scene out of gangster movie, a court heard on Thursday.

Paladini, 58, was forced to write out a letter of resignation and to
sign two documents surrendering his shares after being confronted by
"hired muscle" during a match against Sheffield United, London's
Blackfriars Crown Court was told.

David Williams QC, prosecuting, told the court: "He was shouted at,
slapped and punched by the group until he complied. He had no means of
escape and terrified for his safety did as he was told."

Seven men deny blackmail, false imprisonment and possession of a
firearm or imitation firearm on August 13 last year at QPR's home
ground, Loftus Road. They include 50-year-old club director David
Morris and Andrew Baker, 39, from Somerset.

Opening the case Williams told the jury: "I don't know if you watch
the Sopranos -- it was like something out of gangster movie.

"The case involves an attempt to coerce a majority shareholder of the
famous West London football club Queens Park Rangers into resigning
his position on the Board of Directors and to surrender his shares.

"However, this was no boardroom battle at a football club of the type
which you might be familiar from the business or sports pages of the
newspapers.

"Quite literally, a gun was produced and possibly held to the head of
Gianni Paladini, who then owned a 14.7 per cent stake in the club.

"At the dictation of David Morris, a co-director of the club, he was
forced to write out a letter of resignation and to sign two documents.
To ensure that he did so he was intimidated by the presence of `hired
muscle' provided by Baker.

"This all took place on Saturday August 13 last year -- QPR were
playing at home against Sheffield United.

"Shortly before kick off Morris and Mr Paladini were both in the
Chairman's suite on the second floor in the South Africa Road stand.

"Officials from both QPR and Sheffield United were enjoying the
pre-match hospitality. Mr Paladini arrived at the ground with his
daughter Kate, his son Stephen and grandson Gianluca.

ENTRY BARRED

"David Morris asked if he could have a word with Paladini and the two
men went up another flight of stairs to the Chief Executive's Office
to speak privately.

"Within minutes a group of around six men burst into the room including Baker.

"One of the group -- Baker -- sat next to Paladini, another stood
immediately behind him. Others filled the room and took up positions
which would have left Mr Paladini in no doubt of their intentions.

"A gun was produced -- real or imitation -- and was pointed at Mr
Paladini before being placed on the table in front of him.

"From the rear he could feel something being pushed to the back of his
head. He was never in a position to see if that was a gun or not but
understandably feared that it was.

"It was against this scenario that Gianni Paladini was forced to write
his own letter of resignation. He was shouted at, slapped and punched
by the group until he complied.

"He had no means of escape and, terrified for his safety, did as he was told."

Officials were barred entry, including the then QPR Chairman Bill
Power. Having signed, Paladini was told to leave with his family and
never return, being paid for his shares later directly into his bank
account.

The hearing continues.

Lonnie Smetana is a soccer writer and owner of the http://www.red-card.org web site.

The next two weeks will have a crucial impact on whether Arsenal's prolific striker will be staying at Arsenal.

Today, the Gunners face Manchester City away at 2:45pm ET (live on Fox Soccer Channel). If Arsenal can win today's match, the two biggest hurdles for the North Londoners will be Sunday's match at home against Wigan and the Champions League Final on May 17.

If Arsenal win today and Spurs win on Sunday, the Gunners will have to hope that they can beat Barcelona in the Champions League Final in order to play in the Champions League next year. Otherwise, they'll end up in the UEFA Cup. And I don't see Thierry Henry sticking around for that, even if the club is moving to a new stadium this summer.

The next two weeks will be very suspenseful. Given Arsenal's current form, they should defeat Man City today and Wigan on Sunday. Spurs, meanwhile, have a London derby against West Ham on Sunday -- not an easy match by any means.

My prediction: If Spurs win on Sunday against West Ham and Barcelona defeat Arsenal, Henry will be gone.

Yesterday, thousands of fans lined the streets of Reading to cheer their blue and white hooped stars.

The team broke the remarkable record of achieving the most number of points in the Championship ever (106). Plus, their goal difference was a staggering +67, and they scored 99 goals in one season. Americans Marcus Hahnemann (former Colorado Rapids goalkeeper) and Bobby Convey (former DC United) are two of the stars of the team.

But how will they perform in the Premiership? And can they do a Wigan?

It all depends on manager Steve Coppell and how creative he can get in the transfer market this summer. The Reading team doesn't have a lot of money, so it'll need to strengthen its team wisely.

England legend Steve Coppell's previous management jobs have been at Crystal Palace, Man City, Brentford and Brighton. With Crystal Palace, his side was eventually relegated from the Premiership under his helm. He tasted relegation with Brighton also.

So it's too early to say whether they'll be the next Wigan, but we should have a much better idea in early August when the Premiership kicks off again.

The stage is set for the final day of the Premiership season. Out of the 10 EPL matches that all kick off at 10am on Sunday, Fox Soccer Channel has announced that it'll be televising three of the matches, all on tape delay.

Newcastle v Chelsea. Sunday, Noon ET. While the match will give Chelsea's subs a chance to shine, including Shaun Wright-Phillips (who may be on his way to Liverpool), the match will mean much more for Newcastle as they hope to qualify for the UEFA Cup. Prediction: Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea.

Portsmouth v Liverpool, Sunday, 2pm ET. In a must-win match for Liverpool, this could be quite a game. If Liverpool win and Man United fail to beat Charlton, the Reds will end up in second place. Portsmouth meanwhile will be sure to give Harry Redknapp a hero's welcome. Prediction: Portsmouth 1-1 Liverpool.

Arsenal v Wigan, Sunday, 4pm ET. In the biggest match of the day, Arsenal will bid a fond farewell to Highbury in the last match at the hallowed ground. Meanwhile, if Arsenal can beat Man City on Thursday, the Gunners will have to win this match and hope that Spurs lose (or tie) against West Ham to have any hope of finishing in fourth place. Prediction: Arsenal 3-2 Wigan.

Meanwhile, the Man United v Charlton match, being played Sunday at 10am ET, will be shown live on pay-per-view. Prediction: Man United 1-1 Charlton.

After the first round of bidding closed this past Thursday for the TV rights to the English Premier League (2007-2013 season), the Premier League announced that SkySports (to no surprise) has won three of the six packages available.

Experts predict that Sky is very likely now to secure five out of the six packages during the next round of bidding.

According to the Daily Telegraph newspaper, "there is a growing belief among bidders, which include NTL, the cable group, Setanta, the Irish broadcaster, and Channel 4, that the Premier League has conducted the sealed auction process in a way that has maximised Sky's chances of retaining its position as the home of top-flight football on our TV screens."

Read the full Telegraph story here.