July 7, 2017
By Ken Kerschbaumer
Telemundo Deportes’ exclusive Spanish-language coverage of the FIFA Confederations Cup from Russia was a winner in the ratings as it outperformed Univision coverage of the 2009 World Cup by 47% in total viewer average. But even without that win the experience and commitment to have a team of 100 people on site in Russia to get a sense of what to expect next summer would have made it a worthwhile effort, according to Eli Velazquez, Telemundo Deportes, EVP of programming production and content.
The Confederations Cup is an event held within the host nation of the World Cup a year prior to the actual Cup competition. It features only eight teams and four venues but along with being a great event in and of itself it gives FIFA and the host nation a chance to test out everything from venue operations to transport, security, and the actual match production and compound operations.
“Even though this was only four venues and we will need to amplify things much more for all 12 venues we have a much better idea of what to expect,” he adds. “When we get into the war room after the FIFA World Cup draw on December 1 we will be much better informed on what we will need to do. Overall the experience has been positive and we’re pretty pleased what we’ve seen so far out of the Russian people.”
The experience not only helped the production team and on-air talent understand the rhythm and challenges ahead but also understand the cultural differences when working in Russia, how security protocols will work, and even things like medical and transport. And there was also a need to make sure that Spanish-speaking Americans and others in the U.S. are aware well in advance that the World Cup will not be on Univision next year.
“The Confederations Cup was a big deal for us logistically but we also needed to start breaking viewer habits as Univision has had the World Cup for decades,” explains Velazquez. “We are the new kids on the block but we have a wealth of experience and it is important to get this right and create awareness. So, what better way than this tournament with the Mexican national team participating? Although even if it was team. USA that was here we would have had the same rollout.
“I am so much more bullish on next summer,” adds Velazquez. “The World Cup is intimidating and a huge worldwide event but I am feeling even better about it because the experience at the Confederations Cup will make the operation go more smoothly next year.”
Telemundo does not have a dedicated sports channel but that doesn’t mean it was shy about putting the Confederations Cup front and center for viewers. On the last day, for example viewers were treated to live pre-game coverage of both the third-place match (which featured Mexico vs. Portugal) and the final as well as two hours of live coverage between the two matches.
“For this tournament, we integrated our studio operations back home in Miami from a new studio that was built for soccer coverage at the Rio Olympics,” says Velazquez. “There we had augmented reality integrations, sponsor integrations, and a touch screen.”
Next year’s studio operations will be done out of Russia but the Confederations Cup allowed the team to get a better sense of what it will be like to handle signal feeds and transmission.
“We want to have a kineticism to the show where we go from the studio to the host at the announce position and bring a sense of the scope and scale of a World Cup event to the people back home so that they can experience what we experienced here in Russia,” adds Velazquez.
Telemundo also had commentary teams at every match to see whether it should have on-site commentary for all 64 matches next year. That remains to be seen and will rely heavily on how the logistics challenges for the opening round of match play sort out in December.
“We wanted to be at every match because it amplifies the experience for our talent and they are more engaged,” says Velazquez. “Plus, they can feel the energy at the venue and see more of what is going on than if they were watching it on a screen back home.”
Speaking of engaged talent, in the world of soccer there is arguably none more engaging and well known than Andrés Cantor. His “goooaaalll” call is the thing of sports highlights shows around the world and next year’s World Cup will be the first time he will call the event for a TV audience since 1998.
“He has found a new vigor and you can sense his youthful enthusiasm coming out,” says Velazquez. “What he brings to the table is a keen sense of knowing when something is going to happen and how to apply the right amount of energy to a moment. And when the match is over he comes out of it looking like he just played. He really gives it his all. And Sammy Sadovnik also has a spectacular energy and enthusiasm.”
The primary broadcast team put the Mexican team at the center of operations, following the team and offering up reports the day before, day of, and day after matches that featured the Mexican national team. They also leverage coverage from HBS, the production company behind FIFA’s Confederations Cup and World Cup host services for the rights holders.
“HBS has done a really nice job and it was good to know we have enhanced coverage provided by our partnership with FIFA and HBS,” says Velazquez.
The Telemundo team will lean even harder on HBS next year as HBS offers up a tremendous amount of content for each of the 64 clubs and ensures rights holders will have access to video of teams arriving, practices, interviews, and profiles of the 11 different cities that will host the matches.
“We’re the Spanish-language rights holder in the U.S. and for team USA but we will also be in the unique position of having a dynamic viewer community,” says Velazquez. “So, we will want to tell the stories of every national team we feel can resonate with them.”
Helping in those storytelling efforts is the experience Telemundo has working with NBC Olympics. And the fact that Jim Bell, executive producer for NBC Olympics is also executive producer of the World Cup ensures that Telemundo will take an editorial focus that is about more than goals and red cards.
“You learn that there are so many stories to be told about athletes from other countries that might not speak our language,” explains Velazquez. “Those stories can move you just as well as if they were in your language because at the end of the day we’re all human so we want to identify those stories that will compel viewers to identify with players and teams. Ultimately, we are all story tellers and that is what I find fascinating on a personal level.”
The challenge for the rights holders next year will be that soccer is not a sport that has natural breaks in the action, providing a space for quick-hitting profiles and anecdotes to make air during a match.
“It’s not easy but we can find time with ancillary programming, digital programs, and nonlinear offerings so we can tell stories 24/7 with a more platform-agnostic approach,” adds Velazquez.
Over the course of the Confederations Cup more than 16 million viewers tuned in to watch Telemundo’s TV coverage and streaming minutes totaled 46 million so viewers look primed to become more engaged for the main event next summer.
“We realize this is a huge responsibility and, as such, we want people to know that we truly care about what they want to experience as a viewer,” says Velazquez. “The real key is having a conversation with the viewers so we know how to do bigger and better things next year and in the next two cycles.”
Source: Sports Video Group News
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