The FIFA World Cup 2014 isn't the first time a large sporting event has taken place in the digital age. But nevertheless, for a number of reasons, it will be one of the most high-tech live events ever, especially the way we watch it. 

Streaming live events online has pretty much become the norm since the last FIFA World Cup in 2010, and mobile video is on the rise — especially among Latinos in the U.S.

Online Streaming Will Be a Big Part of FIFA World Cup 2014

Meanwhile, TV set-top devices and plugins like Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV — not to mention now two generations of popular internet-connected game consoles — have become nearly ubiquitous in living rooms, bringing the online streaming and mobile video worlds together, all on your big screen.

That's different from four years ago. Remember, for example, during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Netflix streaming on consoles and a few high-end TVs and Blu-Ray players had only been around for about a year or so, and the company was still battling Blockbuster. The world's first iPad had just been released. 4G wireless wasn't really a thing the public could sign up for yet. 

Since then, according to Seth Ader, ESPN's senior director of sports marketing via CNET, smartphone penetration has increased from 67 million to 160 million, and the number of tablet users have risen from 13 million to 119 million. The average U.S. broadband speed in 2010 was almost 4 Mbps, and now it's almost 10 Mpbs.

It will be a competitive part of this year's World Cup as well. Unlike broadcasts and digital streaming of the Olympics, which have been completely sealed up in the U.S. by NBC and its affiliates, the 2014 World Cup will be covered by both Disney/ESPN (ABC) and Univision. And media provider AT&T Uverse is adding its own digital spin on the broadcasts it's carrying.

Here's how many of us, now almost completely tied to the digital media world, will watch the FIFA World Cup 2014.

Univision Deportes: A Head Start With No Paywall

You can watch the first two rounds of the World Cup for free, streaming on the Univision Deportes App for iOS, Android, and on the web. That's the first 56 games for free, no pay TV subscription authentication needed.

Starting with the quarterfinals on July 4, you'll need to sign in with your cable or satellite network login information to watch the games, according to Variety. The other caveat is that the games will be broadcast in Spanish, so if you don't understand the language but really want to hear what the commentators are saying, you might get frustrated (Spanish speakers might also be frustrated by the commentators though, just for different reasons). However, it's soccer, which is easy enough to understand no matter what language the commentary is, and "Gooooal!" pretty much translates instantly into every language.

Univision Deportes is also broadcasting all 64 World Cup matches on TV, of course, which is available on DirecTV, DISH, Time Warner Cable, Cox, AT&T U-Verse and Verizon FiOS, along with wall-to-wall coverage, which started on Monday June 9.

But its no-paywall digital streaming effort — especially being available natively on mobile — will likely attract a lot of viewers who might otherwise need to go to illegal streaming sites or the bar to catch their favorite team.

It's a savvy move, and Univision Deportes is pairing the free streaming with a campaign to urge viewers to contact their local pay TV and internet providers to carry the Spanish language sports network.

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ESPN: Going All Out On Digital, but Not for Free

Univision Deportes' free offering is also savvy, considering that ESPN's paywall-protected digital strategy is so sophisticated, ubiquitous, and thorough.

ESPN, all of its networks (including ESPN 2 and Spanish-language Univision rival, ESPN Deportes), and ABC will run live coverage of every match of the World Cup on TV.

Every single match, along with typically in-depth coverage, will also be available on computers, iPhones, Android smartphones, tablets, game consoles, Smart TVs, set-top devices, HDMI dongles ... you get the picture. It's wall-to-wall, cross-platform, and fully digital coverage through the highly rated WatchESPN app. The ESPN3 app and WatchABC app are also going to carry some matches.

On top of that, the network's "second-screen" app, ESPN3 Surround, will open up the game even more for viewers, allowing fans to watch the game with multiple alternate camera angles. ESPN Deportes on the web (embedding content from WatchESPN) will also run matches in alternate languages as well, including Portuguese and Korean.

Finally, while the Univision Deportes app is basic and a little buggy, the new ESPN FC app, which we included in the best FIFA World Cup 2014 apps to follow and watch the tournament, is as close to a fully tailored, cutting-edge app that any "old media" network has come. ESPN FC, both on the web and for mobile (iOS, Android, and Windows), allows users to choose a language and country for a customized, curated experience that will deliver live updates of as much relevant news, schedules, videos, polls, and other content as possible. And you don't even necessarily have to pick a language and country (though you can), because ESPN FC uses your phone's geographic identification to automatically set the content you're most likely to be interested in.

"The idea behind this is that our World Cup production is not just a TV play any more, it's a multimedia presentation," said ESPN FC's Bimal Kapadia to CNET. "They're realizing that they have so much content, where else can you put it? FC is becoming an extension of TV."

But to actually watch the World Cup on ESPN's digital offerings, you still have to subscribe to a pay TV service, because, like NBC during the Olympics, ESPN is putting its livestreams behind an authentication wall. Here are the networks you can use your login credentials to activate WatchESPN:

- AT&T U-verse
- Bright House Networks
- Charter
- Comcast XFINITY
- Cox
- DISH
- Google Fiber
- Midcontinent Communications
- Optimum
- Time Warner Cable
- Verizon FiOS TV
- Yadtel

AT&T: Putting its Own Interactive Spin on Digital TV Viewing

Although AT&T is a provider of ESPN and Univision Deportes through its U-verse TV and broadband service, the company is also adding some interesting digital options to its World Cup offerings (obviously for U-verse customers only).

AT&T launched a new 2014 FIFA World Cup TV app for high speed internet subscribers that will make the TV watching experience more interactive, including access to statistics, schedules, athlete bios, scores, and additional information, which will be embedded on the TV screen. Customers just press the "Go Interactive" button on their U-verse TV remote to find the app. With this, AT&T is attempting to meld the "second screen" experience usually found on separate apps right into the TV — much like how Xbox One is attempting to embed Twitter streams into TV shows viewed on the platform.

In addition, AT&T is enabling "Multiview" for viewing up to four games at once, for the really World Cup crazy. The company is also streaming live matches on Uverse.com in English or Portuguese. While it isn't as dominant as ESPN or as accessible as Univision Deportes, AT&T's digital strategy is an interesting attempt at converging digital offerings and TV in the same location, offering little bonus features to its subscribers.