Telemundo’s coverage of elite, global soccer won’t end after the World Cup final.
Telemundo has acquired the Spanish-language broadcast rights in the U.S. for all UEFA men’s club competitions for three seasons, beginning in 2027-28, the company announced Sunday.
The deal will bring live coverage of every match in the Champions League, the European tournament widely considered the world’s most prestigious club competition, across all of NBCUniversal’s broadcast, streaming and digital platforms, which include Peacock, Universo and Telemundo Deportes Ahora, its free, ad-supported television (FAST) channel.
The package will also include the Spanish-language rights to UEFA’s Europa League, Conference League and Super Cup competitions. (NBCUniversal is the parent company of NBC News and Telemundo.)
After the World Cup drew record audiences for Telemundo, the next question was how to continue building on such interest, said Cesar Conde, the chairman of NBCUniversal News Group. The Champions League, which is played annually and features many of the stars who became household names in the U.S. during the World Cup, was a natural answer.
“The World Cup didn’t really create an American soccer audience; it revealed it,” Conde said. “Premium soccer is just one of those truly global experiences that’s leapt out in the media ecosystem, and it brings people together from different backgrounds, different cultures, and different languages, and for something to be able to transcend all of that is very powerful in this current media ecosystem.”
Luis Fernández, Chairman of NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, described Telemundo’s overarching strategy as being based on “live TV, live TV live TV,” and that within live television, soccer’s appeal is uniquely broad and compelling.
The company has invested heavily in the sport. On Thursday, Telemundo announced it will carry more than 100 matches per season from Germany’s Bundesliga. The company already carries the Spanish-language broadcasts for the Premier League, the Olympics, U.S. men’s and women’s national teams matches and Liga MX clubs Guadalajara, FC Juárez and Tigres UANL.
“This World Cup demonstrates that for our audience here in the states, (soccer) is very important,” Fernández said. “If you ask what is the most important franchise brand sports rights in football and soccer, there are only two names: World Cup for the national teams and Champions League for the most important clubs in the world.”
The deal comes at a time of surging viewership for soccer in the U.S.
Through the semifinals, Telemundo’s coverage averaged a total audience of 6 million, an increase of 147% on the 2022 World Cup at the same stage of the tournament, according to the company.
A record audience of 50 million watched the U.S. match in the round of 16 of the World Cup across all broadcasters, making it the most-watched non-NFL sporting event this century, according to U.S. Soccer. Yet viewership continued to set records even after the U.S. team’s run was over. A total audience of 11.4 million watched Argentina’s win over England on Telemundo and Peacock, making it the most-watched semifinal ever in Spanish-language media history, according to the company. Spain’s win over France was watched by an audience of 9.8 million.
Notably, Telemundo says it reaches 96% of U.S. Hispanic TV households, the audience for its World Cup broadcasts hasn’t been limited to Spanish speakers. Though about 20% of the U.S. population is Hispanic, Telemundo’s broadcasts drew more than half of some matches’ total audience, including the round of 16 thriller between England and Mexico, according to Variety.
“An interesting dynamic that we particularly saw during this World Cup is that fans increasingly aren’t choosing to consume premium soccer based only on language,” Conde said. “They’re choosing it based on authenticity and the experience that they want to get out of the events. And so that’s what I think has also been a great insight and reminder for everyone in the marketplace, that authenticity in coverage of a global sporting event like soccer can transcend language, demographics, and cultures.”
Aleksander Čeferin, the UEFA President and chair of the board of UC3, which sells UEFA’s media rights, said in a statement that the “agreement with Telemundo reflects both the strength of our competitions and the passion of Spanish-speaking fans in the United States.”
This post appeared first on https://www.nbcnews.com