The way we watch football is changing and 2010 could be a landmark year, as 3D arrives in the living room, or at least the living rooms of well off early adopters.

3DTV

What with 2010 being the future and all, it’s apparently about time we all starting watching things in three dimensions. TV manufacturers and broadcasters have decided the time is right with Sony, LG and others announcing their 3D capable televisions for release later this year and, like it or not, football will be at the forefront of the new technology. As we ‘understand’ it the 3D effect is achieved by a dual-camera system recording two images, for the left and right eye of the viewer, that when viewed through special glasses give the impression of depth. For a more informed guide to the ins and outs of 3DTV, these guys seem to know what they’re talking about.

What we do know about 3DTV is that you’ll need a new 3D capable TV and glasses, though Sky’s upcoming service will work with their existing dishes and Sky+ HD boxes, which is good news considering how much money you’ll need to be saving. Sky will launch their 3D channels in mid 2010 in the UK, and live Premier League football will likely be a major part of the package, as broadcasters hope live sport coverage will be one of the driving forces behind the adoption of the new technology.

The World Cup

Sure, it’s not like anyone needs to see the World Cup in 3D to make it any more exciting, but it’ll at least be an entertaining distraction, and at most it could be the making of 3DTV. Sony are filming the competition with their 3D cameras and ESPN are broadcasting it live in 3D in the US, but there are no plans yet for the BBC and ITV to do the same in the UK.

Internet TV

England’s infamous match in Ukraine last year brought internet pay per view football into the mainstream for the first time. With the current TV deals having a couple of years left to run, we aren’t likely to see many more games streamed exclusively online in 2010, though there will be more ways than ever to watch the games that are broadcast. In 2009, Sky Player subscribers were able to watch live football on Sky Sports on the PC, Xbox 360 as well as mobile devices like the iPhone, and the service is likely to expand in 2010 with more channels and improved streaming as well as spreading to other platforms such as the PS3.