Language and culture have always come together in major soccer tournaments. Join host Mariana Bermudez as she discusses the impact Spanish broadcast, specifically, has had in recent soccer tournaments, breaking records and succeeding in ways never seen before.

Mariana: ¡Hola a todos! Welcome back to From the Stands, a podcast where we dive deep into the world of soccer, and not just what happens on the pitch. I’m your host, Mariana Bermudez, and today we will be discussing the impact Spanish broadcasting has had in recent soccer tournaments, and how they have gained momentum, reaching large audiences across the globe.

So purchase your game ticket, pick the best seat and enjoy the match, as everything happens…from the stands!

[From the Stands - Theme Music]

Picture this: It is the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup final in Qatar. Argentina looked to pull a miracle against France, the reigning champions. As the world stood still, Argentine defense Gonzalo Montiel prepared to take the penalty that would award Argentina their third World Cup since 1986. He exhaled, took a few steps back, gave a glance towards the post and, before we knew it, he scored and everyone watching at home witnessed this…

[Andrés Cantor’s celebration and narration during Argentina v. France]

That was Andrés Cantor, Argentinian sports journalist, play-by-play announcer for Telemundo, and owner of the most viral and iconic commentary during the 2022 World Cup final. His live narration, filled with emotion and passion for his native country, instantly stole the hearts of television viewers and hours later went viral on social media. Cantor himself even posted a video of the moment, drawing 2.6 million views on TikTok and 2.5 million views on Instagram reels.

I will admit…I did shed a few tears when I heard his voice. I understood that I didn’t need to be Argentinian to feel the same emotions Cantor and everyone else watching the game were feeling. It was soccer. It was fútbol. It was the way a language such as Spanish conveyed emotion, excitement, drama, tension, all of that good stuff, and so much more during a soccer match.

Spanish broadcast, and specifically Spanish sports broadcasting in the United States, played a big role in the number of viewers across the whole tournament. Numbers went off the roof and records were made.

According to NBCUniversal, the group under which Telemundo works, the opening game of the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup, played by hosts Qatar against Ecuador, attracted four million viewers across Telemundo, Peacock and Telemundo Deportes’ digital platforms. This was a 164% increase – yes, you heard right – compared to the 2018 opening game, which only attracted 1.54 million viewers. If that isn’t already impressive enough, check this out: The final, between Argentina and France, was the most-watched match of the tournament in Spanish, with a total of nine million viewers. These numbers went up 65% from the 2018 final, which attracted 5.5 million viewers.

But let’s stop for a moment. While all of these numbers sound amazing, making Spanish-language networks look like the dominating soccer coverage providers, it’s important to understand why this happens.

Why don’t we backtrack a little bit, yeah? Let’s first understand what the world of fútbol means to Spanish-speaking communities.

[Sound effect: A fast whoosh followed by a hitting soccer ball]

In 2016, a TelevisaUnivision article described it as two things: culture and connection. In many occasions termed as ‘the beautiful game,’ soccer is rooted in culture and connection. According to the article, soccer brings up core memories in Spanish-speaking communities. Whether people grew up playing soccer or having family cookouts and a match playing in the living room, soccer is a sport that has always brought people together.

When it comes to connection, soccer appeals even more to Spanish-speaking communities based in the United States. As TelevisaUnivision describes it, soccer is a bridge to the “generational divide.” That is, people who watch their national teams play are able to connect with their native countries through the sport, even if they are far away. Soccer keeps their appreciation and passion for their heritage going, and this is something that Spanish-language networks have also made sure to convey.

While conducting viewership research, some of the numbers blew my mind. According to a 2018 Nielsen report on soccer viewership among Hispanic Americans in 2017, they accounted for over 68% of soccer viewership. As for Spanish-speaking networks, this upward trend has even been seen among younger Hispanic Americans whose dominant language is English. Eighty-three percent of them primarily watched soccer in Spanish-speaking networks.

What do we think? I’ll tell you what I think…that is extremely impressive! It’s important to note that this was a report made six years ago. It would not shock me to see those numbers double and triple nowadays.

[Sound effect: Stadium crowd applauding]

In the United States specifically, there are two Spanish-speaking broadcast networks that have led the way to the numbers we are seeing: Univision and Telemundo. Univision being owned by Mexican group TelevisaUnivison and Telemundo, as mentioned before, working under NBCUniversal and owned by American company Comcast.

Now more than ever, they lead the coverage in some of the most-watched soccer tournaments, whether that is national team competitions or international club tournaments.

Now, obviously, one thing at their advantage is that for many years they have had Spanish language soccer broadcasting rights. In recent years, just to name a few, Univision has had rights to competitions such as the CONCACAF Gold Cup, CONMEBOL Copa América and the UEFA European Championship. On the other hand, Telemundo has been in charge of broadcasting the FIFA Men’s and Women’s World Cup and the Olympic Games.

These two networks have been fan favorites. And since these competitions aren’t a yearly thing, but rather every two years or every four years, the anticipation makes it even more exciting for fans.

Up next are a few numbers on how these networks did in the recent editions of these tournaments. But don’t worry! It is not all just numbers! I’ll also sprinkle in a few of my personal favorite narrations throughout these tournaments, to showcase the different ways announcers convey excitement and passion in Spanish. So stay with me!

[Sound effect: A fast whoosh followed by a hitting soccer ball]

Number one: The CONMEBOL Copa América

The final match between Argentina and Colombia delivered 6.35 million total viewers on Univision, drawing the largest audience since the 2014 Men’s World Cup final, when Univision used to have rights to the tournament. Regarding full coverage, Univision averaged 1.86 million viewers throughout the tournament.

My favorite narration has to be this one.

[Televisa Univision’s TUDN announcer during Venezuela vs. Canada match]

A pretty good one, don’t you think?

Number two: The UEFA European Championship – also known as the Euros

The final match between Spain and England delivered three million total viewers, making it the most-watched Euro telecast ever in Spanish-language, according to TelevisaUnivision. With the Copa América, both tournaments saw record viewership on Univision.

Number three: 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup

Women’s soccer continues to gain visibility by the second, and its coverage in Spanish more than a year ago continues to prove it. To give an example, the group stage game between team USA and Vietnam attracted an average of one million viewers across Telemundo and Peacock, while USA’s game against the Netherlands averaged 1.51 million viewers among the Spanish-language audience.

And for my favorite narration, drum roll please.

[Telemundo announcer during Colombia vs. Germany match]

I know, it's very addictive.

Then, number four: 2024 Paris Olympic Games

While the Olympic Games are filled with so many amazing sports, the Spanish-speaking audience does not shy away from watching the soccer games played. According to NBCUniversal News Group, the tournament produced the top eight highest-rated Olympic soccer matches on Telemundo since the 2016 Rio Games. The most watched women’s game was USA against Germany, with 731,000 total viewers, and the most watched men’s game was France against Guinea, with 589,000 total viewers.

OK, take a deep breath, we are done with numbers!

Now, while the numbers are great, we’ve seen how the emotions conveyed throughout a soccer game go beyond how many people watch or not. It’s the way the simplest action, such as kicking or throwing a ball, is narrated. It’s the way language can have the power to evoke core memories in many families’ lives, because, to reiterate, soccer is something universal in most, if not all, of Spanish-speaking families.

That’s what I like about what Spanish networks have been doing and continue to do. Not only are they making history, but also keeping cultural ties together.

Now, did this convince you to give soccer narrated in Spanish a try? I really hope so!

This brings us to the conclusion of this episode of From the Stands. I’ll catch you next time, when I share with you all a list of Latino sports journalists who have made it big in the industry. Thank you so much for listening!

[From the Stands - Theme Music]