Telemundo Deportes set for its debut as the exclusive Spanish-language home of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia

More than 500 employees, who will collectively clock more than 200,000 manpower hours on the ground in Russia and operate more than 110 tons of equipment, are now in place and ready for kick-off as Telemundo Deportes gets set for its debut as the exclusive Spanish-language home of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia, which begins this Thursday, June 14 and continues through the Final on Sunday, July 15.

“Our North Star is to be World Cup Great, not just World Cup ready. We had our chance to work things out here last summer during the Confederations Cup, and we’re committed to providing the best, most authentic World Cup coverage–in any language–from opening kickoff through the final whistle,” said Ray Warren, president of Telemundo Deportes.

In addition to more than 20 play-by-play voices, game analysts, soccer experts and correspondents who will be working on-air for Telemundo Deportes, the network will also have 64 production engineers and an additional 25 dedicated Telemundo camera crews working throughout Russia, in partnership with 40 FIFA TV Film crews and Digital Production Crews providing pool footage across all cities and stadiums.

“Learning how to get your teams to and from locations was really important,” said Eli Velázquez, EVP, Programming, Production & Content, Telemundo Deportes, noting that World Cup matches this year will be spread over 11 cities, 12 venues and four time zones, given that Russia is the largest country in the world. “Also, understanding the culture and historical significance of some of the sites, and looking at how these narratives could be leveraged, was beneficial.”

For the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia, Telemundo will also utilize:

500+ on-the-ground personnel to produce all 64 games from Russia

The 20+ commentary team of play-by-play voices, game analysts, soccer experts and correspondents

4 announce teams covering in-venue for the majority of the matches

150+ dedicated personnel at the International Broadcast Center

40+ dedicated personnel at Telemundo’s Red Square studio location

25+ dedicated personnel at Telemundo’s Gorky Park studio location

10+ dedicated personnel at Telemundo’s Zaryadye Park studio location

110 tons of equipment

The 78-vehicle fleet for transportation of personnel

37 cameras, including FIFA pool feed cameras and Telemundo exclusive cameras

7 studios and stages– Red Square; the International Broadcast Center; Telemundo News and ARV; Zaryadye Park; Gorky Park (for Un Nuevo Dia); Fan Festival Moscow, and Luzhniki Stadium

20+ technical production and editing facilities–Miami Telemundo Center; Telemundo Hialeah; NBC Sports Group Stamford; 30 Rock in New York City; NBCU Technology Center Englewood Cliffs; Comcast Media Center Colorado; International Broadcast Center, Gorky Park and Zaryadye Park, all 12 FIFA World Cup venues across Russia

64 production engineers and an additional 25 dedicated Telemundo camera crews working throughout Russia

4K Ultra High Definition available for all 64 World Cup matches on demand via a 4K-capable set-top box and a 4K television

56 live matches on Telemundo

8 live matches on Universo

All 64 matches live on Telemundo Deportes En Vivo and NBC Sports apps (in Spanish)

All 64 encore presentations of each game every night on Universo

32 days starting June 14 through the Final July 15

11 cities covering about 75 percent of the U.S.

12 venues throughout Russia

4 time zones with 7 hours ahead of the U.S. Eastern Time zone

The Telemundo team made more than 400 individual visits to Russia over 48 months of planning in preparation for the World Cup. NBCUniversal’s support and assets have been in place from the beginning and will continue to stand behind Telemundo Deportes’ coverage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup with Jim Bell, executive producer, Telemundo World Cup, at the center of this commitment, embedded in the Telemundo Deportes team and alongside Velázquez.