Yahoo! Telemundo 2007 Fantasy Soccer Season.

Yahoo! Telemundo announced the launch of its much anticipated Liga Fantastica Mexicana http://www.yahootelemundo.com/ligafantasticamexicana>, the first of five Spanish-language fantasy soccer games set to run this year. The Liga Fantastica Mexicana debuts alongside the revamped Yahoo! Telemundo Deportes Mexican National Soccer League site, which offers visitors detailed league news, information and up-to-the-minute stats on players and teams.

The Liga Fantastica Mexicana (Clausura 2007) is based on the actual play of the 2007 Mexican National Soccer League and allows users to set up and run their own virtual soccer teams. Players of the fantasy soccer game will be able to build a roster of professional soccer players – through weekly player picks – and watch as the team’s success is measured by the on-field statistics of the players. Users can also choose to participate in a public league or create their own custom league together with family, friends or co-workers. In order to keep the game competitive, the “fantasy coaches” are given a finite amount of money when they sign up to spend throughout the season to acquire players.

Yahoo! Telemundo’s robust Mexican National Soccer League site arms fantasy league players with the information they need to make critical game decisions. To do this, the site boasts 18 dedicated mini-sites, one for each of the 18 Mexican National Soccer League teams, with up-to-the-minute news, statistics and rankings specific to each team. Additionally, the site not only includes information on the latest matches, but also features polls, game calendars for each team and even highlights of the goals made per player per team.

“The Liga Fantastica Mexicana and Mexican National Soccer League are ideally suited for soccer fans who live for the game and thrive on being part of the action,” said Jose Rivera-Font, general manager of Yahoo! North Latin America. “They offer players the most complete information with which to make critical game decisions and actively compete with other avid fans, family and friends,” added Peter Blacker, senior vice president, Digital Media, Telemundo Network Group. Other free Liga Fantastica games launching on Yahoo! Telemundo this year include:

— Copa Libertadores (February); to be launched this week in conjunction with Copa Libertadores site on Yahoo! Telemundo Deportes, which will include complete statistical information on the teams and players, special groups and message boards.
— Liga Mexicana Apertura 2007 (August-December)
— Formula 1 (March-October)
— Spanish Soccer League (August-June)
— Italian Soccer League (September-May)

Registration for both Liga Fantastica Mexicana (Clausura 2007) and Liga Fantastica Copa Libertadores will continue throughout the tournaments.