2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Emblem in Moscow Unveiled: NBCUniversal's Telemundo, Mun2 Aim to Be 'Most Digital' and 'Mobile' World Cup While Highlighting Latinos' Lives and Women in Soccer
NBC's "30 Rock" stood a little taller along with its top execs from NBCUniversal, Telemundo Network, mun2 and Digital Media & Emerging Businesses, for they have scored a major goal by becoming the official Spanish-Language home of the FIFA World Cup in the U.S. -- and they plan to make history by upping the ante on digital and mobile platforms utilized most by Latinos in the U.S. and abroad.
On Tuesday, the NBCUniversal networks held a special unveiling of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia emblem in Moscow at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York with the help of "one of the World's top Legendary Sports Commentators" named by FIFA, Andres Cantor and Jorge Hidalgo, EVP of Telemundo Sports. Cantor and Hidalgo helped kicked off the momentous announcement and braved the cold, live via Satellite from a visibly chilly Moscow.
Also in attendance were heavy media-hitters, including Joe Uva, Chairman of Hispanic Enterprises and Content at NBCUniversal, Luis Silberwasser, President of Telemundo Network, Ruben Mendiola, President of mun2, and Peter Blacker, EVP, Digital Media & Emerging Businesses.
In addition, the networks also announced 2015 broadcast plans totaling over 550 hours of FIFA soccer events across all its platforms with the aforementioned emphasis on enriching the social media and mobile experience.
The NBCUniversal networks will cover four FIFA Events in 2015: the Men's FIFA U-20 World Cup, hosted by New Zealand from May 30 to June 20; the FIFA Women's World Cup played in Canada from June 6 to July 5; the Men's FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup hosted by Portugal from July 9 to July 19 and the FIFA U-17 World Cup played in Chile from Oct. 17 to Nov. 8.
They also plan to incorporate a more human interest side of the game by highlighting the lives and progress of the players leading up until the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia.
"It's early, but I think one of the ways we see this, is really to try to tell the stories of the people who are going to be in this tournament, not just to wait for the tournaments to happen, but to sort of build up the knowledge of the people who are playing, their families and their stories," Luis Silberwasser, President of Telemundo Network, told Latin Post.
"They are sort of growing up for the next four years until they get to Russia. If we can do that well, I think it will be a unique and a very special thing for the Hispanic audience to get deeper into who these people are. I think Joe (Uva, Chairman, Hispanic Enterprises and Content, NBCUniversal) said it right, we're also going to do it in a broad way. We're not only going to focus on Mexicans, but we're going to try represent really what the Hispanic community is in the United States as a whole."
"There is a rich history of storytelling here at Telemundo, as Luis (Silberwasser) pointed out," Joe Uva, Chairman of Hispanic Enterprises and Content at NBCUniversal explained to Latin Post. "One of the things that NBC Sports is best known for is their storytelling. When you look at what they do during the Olympics, it's in this company's DNA. What we want to do is leverage that experience, combined withour own knowledge to really present the players and the teams in a way that they have never been represented before."
Given that the FIFA Women's World Cup, which will take place in Canada from June 6 to July 5, will also be highlighted, does this mean it will be a trailblazing game-changer for both English and Spanish-speaking women in soccer?
"I think it will be great. I think it's purely, on the English language side, women's soccer is bigger than on the Hispanic side, but I also think that nobody has given it the attention and care that this tournament and the Hispanic community deserve," Silberwasser explained. "So, I think that's what we want to do, we want to give it our own twist and try to really bring Hispanic women, the girls who are playing soccer now who are speaking Spanish, to come to Telemundo and watch something for the first time in a great way."
Landing this colossal gig is groundbreaking for these networks because it marks a pivotal moment in their networks' history -- NBCUniversal reportedly won the Spanish-language rights for the 2018 FIFA World Cup over Univision Communications, which has aired every Soccer World Cup tournament since 1978.
"Three years and one week ago, NBCUniversal announced the game-changing acquisition of the exclusive Spanish-language U.S. media rights to the FIFA World Cup," Uva added. "Today we are proud to see the first tangible manifestation of this major acquisition, which will bring unprecedented exposure for Telemundo and mun2 and offer a unique opportunity to accelerate audience growth and consolidate our position in the industry."
The networks' 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia logo reveal highlighted a symbol "that harmonizes the images of the two Hispanic networks with the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia emblem. The resulting piece symbolizes the tournament's values and traditions and officially endows Telemundo and mun2 with the character of the official Spanish-language home of the FIFA World Cup."
The design, which was also revealed at the International Space Station, and the image were projected onto the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, is also inspired by "Russia's rich artistic tradition and its history of achievement and innovation," BBC Sport pointed out.
This marks a historical moment in sports history for Russia, who won the right to host the tournament for the first time after beating England, Spain-Portugal and Netherlands-Belgium in a 2010 vote.
"For me particularly, but also for the whole network of Telemundo, it's a very special moment. There's a saying, for those of you who are familiar with fútbol or soccer, that 'futbol or soccer is not really a matter of life and death, it's really much more important than that,'" Silberwasser joked. "I think that reflects also what it means for Telemundo. It reflects for Telemundo the importance of this event for the network. I also speak for my friend and colleague, Ruben (Mendiola, President of mun2) of mun2."
"We have waited a long time for this event," he added. "If you think about what people in the industry say as 'must-have content,' this is truly 'must-have content.' This is the largest and biggest sporting event in the world in a sport that is the most important sport for all Hispanics -- for all ages, men and women."
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