Telemundo Deportes Secures Media Rights for FIFA Club World Cup, 2018 FIFA World Cup Playoff Game
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Telemundo Deportes, the Spanish-language home of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia, has secured the exclusive, Spanish-language media rights of the FIFA Club World Cup for the next two years and the exclusive, Spanish-language media rights of the deciding leg of the playoffs between Peru and New Zealand as the Latin American team seeks a historic win to return to the World Cup after 36 years.
The Peru and New Zealand matchup is part of the 2018 FIFA World Cup inter-confederation playoffs to determine the last qualifications for Russia 2018. The game will be telecast live on Universo on Wednesday, November 15 beginning at 9 p.m. ET, from the Estadio Nacional de Lima in Peru.
Organized by FIFA, the international club soccer tournament features the champion clubs from each of the six continental confederations and the national league champion of the host country. The opening event for the 2018 FIFA World Cup inter-confederation playoffs will air live across Telemundo, Universo, and the Telemundo Deportes En Vivo App and TelemundoDeportes.com, beginning with the opening match on Wednesday, December 6 at 11:55 a.m. ET.
“As the Spanish-language home of the FIFA World Cup, we are pleased to continue adding the most recognized FIFA events to our programming lineup,” says Ray Warren, President of Telemundo Deportes. “The FIFA Club World Cup showcases some of the world’s best clubs and players and we look forward to continue bringing our viewers world-class soccer coverage across all our platforms.”
The coverage will be led by Telemundo Deportes’ Andrés Cantor, Manuel Sol, Carlos Hermosillo, Copan Alvarez, Sammy Sadovnik and Miguel Gurwitz. Telemundo Deportes’ digital and social media platforms will also provide comprehensive content throughout the tournament.
This year’s tournament will take place in the United Arab Emirates on December 6-16, and will feature the world’s top clubs in a seven matchup event. Already confirmed to participate is current UEFA Champions League winners Real Madrid, CONCACAF Champions Pachuca, CAF Champions League winners Wydad Casablanca, OFC Champions League winners Auckland City and from the host country the Arabian Gulf League champions Al Jazira of the UAE. AFC Champions League and Copa Libertadores winners will also qualify once they are confirmed later this month.
In the current format of the tournament, the host nation’s national champions dispute a play-off against the Oceania champions, from which the winner joins the champions of Asia, Africa and North America at the quarter-finals. The quarter-final winners go on to face the European and South American champions, who enter at the semi-final stage, for a place in the final.
Sammy Sadovnik and Carlos Hermosillo will call the crucial match alongside Miguel Gurwitz who will be hosting a 15-minute pre-game show special. The action will also stream live via the Telemundo Deportes En Vivo app and TelemundoDeportes.com.
The Kiwis arrive to Peru for the return match of the playoff after a 0-0 score in the first leg match at Wellington’s Westpac Stadium in New Zealand last Friday. Peru will go into the match with the advantage of playing home. Nonetheless, they will not count with striker and captain Paolo Guerrero who remains suspended after failing a doping test. The team will leave it all in the field hoping to return to the World Cup for the first time in 36 years and New Zealand looking to make just its third appearance at the anticipated tournament.
