After dinner tonight, I sat on the couch and suddenly remembered: The Elche vs. Atlético Madrid match should have just ended.
I hadn’t watched the live broadcast, but I was dying to know the result: Who won? Were there any goals? Any red cards?
I grabbed my tablet, thinking, “Two minutes should be enough to find out.”
But the search ended up taking nearly an hour, and I was so frustrated I almost tossed the tablet aside.
The first app wouldn’t open—nothing but ads and old news
I opened the sports app I usually use, and it took forever to load.
Then I typed “Elche vs. Atletico” into the search bar.
The results left me dumbfounded:
- One was stale news about “Atlético Madrid targeting Player X”
- Another was a three-day-old match preview
- Plus a bunch of betting ads screaming “Bet to Win Big”
Not a single useful piece of information.
The most ridiculous part? There was no “Match Results” page to be found.
I shut the app immediately, muttering to myself, “What’s the point of keeping this thing?”
Tried a second app—still no good
I switched to another sports app, thinking this one should be more reliable.
But as soon as I opened it, three pop-up ads jumped out: “Sign up for gold coins,” “Guess the score to win an iPhone”…
I hit “Close” three times before finally seeing the homepage.
I found the “Today’s Matches” section, scrolled down, and finally spotted the La Liga tab:
Elche 0 – 2 Atlético Madrid
Oh, Atlético won 2-0.
Now I knew the result, but I still wasn’t satisfied—
I wanted the details! Who scored? When was the red card? What happened with the penalty?
Clicking for match details revealed pitifully sparse info
I opened the match page and waited for it to load.
The screen spun for ages before finally displaying:
It read:
- Match time: 8 PM tonight
- Venue: Elche’s home ground
- Final score: 0-2
Scrolling down, I finally found some content:
- 28th minute: Atletico Madrid scores, 1-0
- 52nd minute: Atletico scores again, 2-0
- 74th minute: Elche player sent off with a red card
- 88th minute: Elche awarded a penalty kick, but misses
Reading this, my mind was filled with question marks:
- How did the first goal happen?
- What action led to the red card?
- Who took the penalty? How did the keeper save it?
I wanted to see the video! But there was a “Highlights” button on the page. Clicking it brought up a message:
- “Highlights are not yet available. Please stay tuned.”
I froze.
The match ended over an hour ago—why no video yet?
Do I have to wait till tomorrow? Or pay for a membership to watch?
I turned to social media and finally found something
No choice—I opened Twitter (X) and searched the hashtag #ElcheAtleti.
Now there was more info, but it was all from fans:
- Atleti fans celebrating: “Another solid win!”
- Elche fans ranting: “The ref was biased! Missed a penalty! So unfair!”
Someone posted a phone video, recorded from TV. The picture was blurry, and the sound echoed with living room noise.
But it was this video that showed me the penalty kick:
An Elche player took a run-up and shot—only for the Atlético keeper to smother it cleanly before the ball even got airborne.
Someone else shared the red card clip:
An Elche player slid in from the side, foot flying high, clearly targeting the opponent.
He deserved to be sent off.
But these were all fan-recorded clips, not official releases.
The poor quality and awkward angles made for a frustrating watch.
Why is checking a match result so difficult?
I shut down all my apps, leaned back on the couch, and pondered:
It’s 2024—why is it still such a hassle to watch a recap of a game that just ended?
Where does the problem lie?
- Official action is too slow
The game’s over, but highlights aren’t online yet. Fans must wait or film themselves. - Apps are scattered
You have to hunt across multiple places: scores in one app, videos in another, commentary on social media. - Too many ads, terrible experience
Open an app, watch a 3-second ad, then tap “close” twice just to see content. It ruins the mood. - No simple summary
I don’t need to watch the full 90 minutes. I just want a 3-minute recap: Who scored? Who got sent off? What were the key moments?
7. What should my ideal match recap look like?
If an app could deliver this, I’d use it daily:
- Immediately after the match ends, it releases a “3-minute recap” video
- Clear visuals with subtitles showing the timeline
- Includes goals, red cards, penalties, and crucial saves
- Plus slow-motion replays for each goal
- Ideally with a text summary for those who skip videos
But now, we still have to piece together info like detectives.
Finally, I figured it out—but I’m not happy
Though I know the result now:
- Atlético won 2-0 away
- Elche had a player sent off and missed a penalty
- The game remained one-sided throughout
But the whole process was such a hassle.
I didn’t want to watch the full match—just spend ten minutes understanding what happened. Instead, it took nearly an hour, and I still couldn’t find the official video.
This makes me feel:
Football itself is thrilling, but the services around watching matches just aren’t keeping up.
I hope someday there’ll be a platform that
doesn’t bombard us with ads,
doesn’t hide information,
and doesn’t make fans feel like they’re “treasure hunting” just to find a goal video.
Keep it simple—just present the results clearly.
We just want to enjoy watching the game. That’s all.