American media prepare for the World Cup

NEW YORK (AP) — The World Cup begins Thursday in Sao Paulo with home team Brazil taking on Croatia in the opening match of the world’s most popular sporting event.

All 64 football matches will be broadcast in English in the United States on ESPN, ESPN2 or ABC. Univision and its associated networks – UniMas, Galavision and Univision Deportes – will broadcast the games in Spanish.

Here are some media questions and answers ahead of the World Cup.

IS THE WORLD CUP PROFITABLE FOR ESPN?

Almost certainly. ESPN won the rights to televise the 2010 and 2014 World Cups for $100 million in 2005, and soccer’s popularity on television has grown exponentially since then. Audiences will surely be up compared to 2010. Advertising on ESPN is about to be sold out, at higher prices than in the past. ESPN also has platforms to monetize its coverage — apps for smartphones and tablets — that didn’t exist in 2005. “It should definitely be profitable,” said Rick Burton, a sports management professor at Syracuse University. , even more so if the United States team is doing well. “I really think the media pundits are going to be surprised by how big the World Cup will be in the United States.” Another profit point is subtle: ESPN might be tempted to save money because the network lost the bid for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Fox.

WHO WILL TURN INTO TV FIGHTERS?

A lot depends on the matches themselves, of course, but expect former U.S. World Cup player Alexi Lalas and retired German star Michael Ballack to go at it repeatedly on ESPN, including with the American and German teams in the same group. The network has adjusted its programming to encourage lively debates among its analysts. Four years ago in South Africa, ESPN discovered that some of the best football discussions took place in the hotel bar after the cameras were turned off. This year, producers will attempt to capture some of that passion, with regular discussion of the “World Cup Tonight” on an informal set.

IS SOCIAL MEDIA READY FOR THE WORLD CUP?

The biggest companies see the potential. Facebook offers a special World Cup section to help fans stay involved with their teams. The football governing body has its own Instagram account. And don’t be surprised if the World Cup sets Twitter usage standards that exceed those of the 2012 London Olympics. All but one participating team has a Twitter account, with the exception of Iran (although Twitter says some of its players have an account). More than three-quarters of Twitter accounts are now outside the United States, making it a natural discussion platform for the world’s most popular game. Twitter has released a helpful guide with dozens of Twitter accounts that fans can follow.

IS THE GOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLL GUY THERE?

Not on television. Andres Cantor, the Spanish-language announcer renowned for his breath-holding “goooooaaal” calls, will broadcast World Cup matches on his own radio channel. If you turn down the TV and listen to Cantor’s radio call, you won’t be alone. Pablo Ramirez is the point man for Univision’s television coverage in the United States. His calls for scores can be just as long but distinctive: “gooaalll-azo azo azo!”

WHAT WILL TV FANS WEAR?

We have a good guess. More than half of people who follow soccer told the Harris Poll that they think it’s important to wear merchandise honoring their favorite team or player while watching the World Cup (this comes from a survey conducted among 2,286 American adults for the Nielsen company last month).

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David Bauder can be contacted at [email protected] or on Twitter @dbauder. His work can be viewed at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/david-bauder.