Sports

Fans and brands feeling down after the conclusion of the FIFA World Cup and seeing the hosting of the 2026 event as too far in the future have a respite in the International Champions Cup presented by Heineken.

Telemundo Deportes announced three-division World Champion and former Olympian athlete Abner Mares returns to join Boxeo Telemundo’s announce team and serve as a special correspondent for all major fights for Titulares y Más, after having served as an analyst for Telemundo’s coverage of the 2016 Rio Olympics.

The World Cup is not only becoming more popular among women but also increasingly effective in reaching female football fans. As England reaches the quarter finals, our data shows it’s time for advertisers to reevaluate their targeting strategies accordingly.

In federal court in Brooklyn, US Imagina, LLC (“Imagina US”) pleaded guilty to a criminal information (the “Information”) charging it with two counts of wire fraud conspiracy in connection with the participation of two of its senior executives in schemes to pay more than $6.5 million in bribes to high-ranking officials of the Caribbean Football Union (“CFU”) and four Central American national soccer federations to secure media and marketing rights to those federations’ World Cup qualifier matches. 

NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises released the groundbreaking study, “La Ola de la FIFA 2018” as part of the most comprehensive World Cup research initiative in the U.S. around soccer fandom.

Telemundo doubles down on its commitment to provide youth the opportunity to play soccer, empower future champions and expand educational opportunities for Latino youth by investing over $35,000 in scholarships to high-need, distinguished student athletes from across the country.

Telemundo Deportes announced it is adding to its sports content portfolio the exclusive Spanish-language U.S. media rights to the 2019 Copa America to be held in Brazil. The 2019 Copa America will be the 46th edition of the quadrennial international men’s soccer championship organized by South America’s soccer ruling body CONMEBOL. Copa America is the oldest international continental soccer competition and it determines the continental champion of South America.

It’s a somewhat tarnished event, of course. First of all: It’s in Russia, and the process by which the country won that honor was tied in with now-proven voting irregularities that ultimately cost then FIFA boss Sepp Blatter his job, and countless regional association leaders their freedom as they are either being prosecuted or are in jail.

Around the globe, few things are as ubiquitous as the sport of fútbol, le foot, calcio, or, as it’s called in the U.S., soccer.  While Americans have their own special moniker for it, the sport has certainly made its own imprint in the U.S. Soccer’s influence and power in the world of televised sports is no exception.  Behind this driving force are U.S. Hispanic viewers, whose consumption habits give televised soccer a unique and powerful profile.

When I was a kid growing up in Colombia, I remember my Dad explaining the game of soccer (aka fútbol) to a visitor from Kansas. He said, “Soccer is a ballgame with two teams, each consisting of 11 players… and Germany always wins!”  By Miguel Gomez Winebrenner, Principal, Ahzul

Soccer is not only one of the most popular sports in the world, but it’s one that has become an integral part of describing our culture in most of the countries in Latin America. We have all experienced and talked about memorable moments of happiness, excitement, surprise and disappointment. Our passion for soccer unites us and helps us, for a moment, to take our mind off of difficult times our countries may be facing.  By: Claudia Gioia, Hill+Knowlton Strategies President, CEO Latin America & the Caribbean

In anticipation of this week’s 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ kickoff, Telemundo Deportes, NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises’ sports division, announced digital activation plans and partnerships ensuring the most complete, digital and linear tournament experience for all fans. In addition to the Spanish-language live streaming of all 64 World Cup matches on Telemundo Deportes En Vivo and the NBC Sports apps, new digital initiatives surrounding the network’s coverage of the tournament will include a full-service virtual reality experience, which will be available on the Telemundo Deportes VR App, World Cup highlights customized with musical GIFs through Gifnote.com, a soccer Emoji keyboard with Sportsmania, GOAL! SHOOTOUT – for the Instant Games platform on Messenger and Facebook and an interactive bracket (or “quiniela”) experience.

The World Cup will account for one in ten of every new ad dollars spent on advertising globally this year. That’s the takeaway from Zenith’s report this year, which predicts the tournament will add $2.4bn to global advertising this year.

The FIFA World Cup is approaching fast, and people around the world are planning to watch it – in a social setting. Globally, more than eight in ten people (84%) report that they will watch the games with friends and family. About half (49%) plan to join with work colleagues.

Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the 2018 FIFA World Cup RussiaTM, and Google announced a partnership that will bring Telemundo’s Spanish-language World Cup content to Google and YouTube for soccer fans across the U.S.

Wonderful Pistachios announced that sportscaster and TV personality, Carmen Boquín, will serve as the brand’s ambassador during the most important soccer event in the world. 

Combate Americas, a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) sports and multimedia entertainment company targeting Hispanics, announced the appointment of media industry veteran and former NBCUniversal executive, Jacqueline Hernandez, as Combate Americas President.

La Copa Mundial is much bigger than the Olympics for Latinos across the U.S., and around the world. But, oftentimes, we think of the World cup as a television property. This isn’t necessarily true, as Entravision Communications Chief Revenue Officer Mario Carrera notes in this Hispanic Radio Podcast.

  By Gonzalo López Martí  –  Creative director, etc  / LMMiami.com

• Imagine you brand organically integrated into the official virtual reality channel of Real Madrid F.C.
• Imagine an immersive behind-the-scenes experience roaming the field, the stands and the corridors of the emblematic Santiago Bernabéu Stadium during game day.
• Imagine having access to Real Madrid’s social feeds reaching more than 560 million fans around the world.
• Imagine no more: it’s a done deal.

Telemundo Deportes unveiled the theme song and music production package for this summer’s World Cup broadcast on Telemundo and Universo, “Sueño de Campeones” or “Champions Dream,” by Emmy Award winning composer and producer Yoav Goren. “Sueño de Campeones” is an extensive music package supporting Telemundo Deportes’ coverage of the most prestigious soccer tournament in the world, featuring 32 teams and a total of 64 matches, played across 12 venues in Russia.