A lot is riding on the World Cup for Univision, which has the exclusive Spanish-language broadcast rights in the United States mainland and Puerto Rico for the event.
Not only are Hispanic viewers crazy for soccer, but the World Cup - or the Mundial as it's known in Spanish - is also regarded as the perfect vehicle to demonstrate the strength and growth of the U.S. Hispanic market.
"This World Cup is extraordinarily important to us," said Cesar Conde, Miami-based president of Univision Networks. "We brought our blood, sweat and tears to this event and its preparation. This really runs through our veins."
During the 2006 World Cup, Univision attracted more than 50 million viewers. Conde expects even higher numbers this year with the new media twists it is offering.
Conde said the World Cup represents the biggest commitment of resources to a single event in Univision's history. Hundreds of producers, sportscasters, anchors, TV personalities and support staff were sent to South Africa for live coverage as well as to do cut-ins for just about every show on the Univision roster except novelas.
"We transform ourselves into World Cup Media Company for the next 30 days," Conde said.
The one-two punch of World Cup coverage, plus 2010 Census numbers to be released early next year that are expected to show the U.S. Hispanic population exceeds 50 million, "will be a unique wake-up call" to advertisers and the U.S. marketplace that "investing in the Hispanic market is investing in growth," said Conde.
"I think viewership numbers from the World Cup will actually be even more important than Census numbers," said Jose Cancela, founder of marketing and consulting firm Hispanic USA and a former Univision executive. "With the Census, there's been kind of an overhype."
