{"id":121066,"date":"2017-07-07T03:22:19","date_gmt":"2017-07-07T07:22:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/?p=121066"},"modified":"2017-07-07T12:47:56","modified_gmt":"2017-07-07T16:47:56","slug":"live-from-confederations-cup-telemundo-deportes-finds-ratings-production-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/2017\/07\/07\/live-from-confederations-cup-telemundo-deportes-finds-ratings-production-success\/","title":{"rendered":"Live From Confederations Cup: Telemundo Deportes Finds Ratings, Production Success"},"content":{"rendered":"

Telemundo Deportes\u2019 exclusive Spanish-language coverage of the FIFA Confederations Cup from Russia was a winner in the ratings, outperforming Univision coverage of the 2009 World Cup by 47% in total viewer average. But, even without that win, the experience and commitment in\u00a0having a team of 100 people onsite in Russia to get a sense of what to expect for the 2018 World Cup next summer would have made it a worthwhile effort, according to Eli Velazquez<\/strong>, EVP, programming production and content, Telemundo Deportes.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Telemundo Deportes\u2019 Eli Velazquez says much was learned during the Confederations Cup.<\/p><\/div>\n

The Confederations Cup is an event held in 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 actual match production and compound operations.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven 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,\u201d says\u00a0Velazquez. \u201cWhen we get into the war room after the FIFA World Cup draw on Dec. 1, we will be much better informed on what we will need to do. Overall, the experience has been positive, and we\u2019re pretty pleased with what we\u2019ve seen so far out of the Russian people.\u201d<\/p>\n

The experience helped the production team and on-air talent understand not only the rhythm and challenges ahead but also the cultural differences in\u00a0working 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.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe 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,\u201d explains Velazquez. \u201cWe 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. 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.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am so much more bullish on next summer,\u201d he continues. \u201cThe 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.\u201d<\/p>\n

Telemundo does not have a dedicated sports channel, but that doesn\u2019t 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 pregame 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.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor 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,\u201d says Velazquez. \u201cThere, we had augmented-reality integrations, sponsor integrations, and a touchscreen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Next year\u2019s studio operations will be located in\u00a0Russia, but the Confederations Cup allowed the team to get a better sense of what it will be like to handle signal feeds and transmission.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to have a kineticism to the show, where we go from the studio to the host at the announce position,\u201d says\u00a0Velazquez, \u201cand 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.\u201d<\/p>\n

Telemundo also had commentary teams at every match to see whether it should have onsite commentary for all 64 matches next year. That remains to be seen, and the decision will depend\u00a0on how the logistics for the opening round of match play sort out in December.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to be at every match because it amplifies the experience for our talent and they are more engaged,\u201d says Velazquez. \u201cPlus, 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.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaking of engaged talent, in the world of soccer, there is arguably none more engaging and well-known than Andr\u00e9s Cantor. His \u201cgoooaaalll\u201d call is heard in sports-highlights shows around the world, and next year\u2019s World Cup will be the first time he will call the event for a TV audience since 1998.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has found a new vigor, and you can sense his youthful enthusiasm coming out,\u201d says Velazquez. \u201cWhat 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.\u201d<\/p>\n

The primary broadcast team put the Mexican team at the center of operations, following the team and offering reports the day before, day of, and day after matches featuring it. The operation\u00a0also leveraged coverage from HBS, the production company behind FIFA\u2019s Confederations Cup and World Cup host services for rightsholders.<\/p>\n

\u201cHBS has done a really nice job,\u201d says Velazquez. \u201cIt was good to know we have enhanced coverage provided by our partnership with FIFA and HBS.\u201d<\/p>\n

Next year, the Telemundo team will lean even harder on HBS, which provides\u00a0a tremendous amount of content for each of the 64 clubs and ensures that rightsholders will have access to video of teams arriving, practices, interviews, and profiles of the 11 host cities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re the Spanish-language rightsholder in the U.S. and for Team USA, but we will also be in the unique position of having a dynamic viewer community,\u201d says Velazquez. \u201cSo we will want to tell the stories of every national team we feel can resonate with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Helping in those storytelling efforts is Telemundo\u2019s experience working with NBC Olympics. And the fact that\u00a0Jim Bell<\/strong>, executive producer for NBC Olympics, is also executive producer of the World Cup ensures that Telemundo will have an editorial focus on\u00a0more than goals and red cards.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou learn that there are so many stories to be told about athletes from other countries, [who]\u00a0might not speak our language,\u201d explains Velazquez. \u201cThose stories can move you just as well as if they were in your language. At the end of the day, we\u2019re all human [and] want to identify those stories that will compel viewers to identify with players and teams. Ultimately, we are all storytellers, and that is what I find fascinating on a personal level.\u201d<\/p>\n

The challenge for rightsholders next year will be that soccer is not a sport that has natural breaks in the action to provide a space for quick-hit profiles and anecdotes to make air during a match.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not easy,\u201d notes\u00a0Velazquez, \u201cbut 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.\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the course of the Confederations Cup, more than 16 million viewers tuned in to watch Telemundo\u2019s TV coverage, and streaming minutes totaled 46 million, so viewers seem\u00a0primed to become more engaged for the main event next summer.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe realize this is a huge responsibility, and we\u00a0want people to know that we truly care about what they want to experience as a viewer,\u201d says Velazquez. \u201cThe 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.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Telemundo Deportes\u2019 exclusive Spanish-language coverage of the FIFA Confederations Cup from Russia was a winner in the ratings, outperforming Univision coverage of the 2009 World Cup by 47% in total […]\n More<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":121067,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[9248,33],"tags":[13019,12337,645],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121066"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=121066"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121066\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":121124,"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/121066\/revisions\/121124"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/121067"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=121066"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=121066"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.sportsvideo.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=121066"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}