Telemundo's Miguel Lorenzo Talks World Cup Success, Streaming

Summary

Podcast Summary: Telemundo’s Miguel Lorenzo Talks World Cup Success, Streaming

Podcast: Bloomberg Talks
Host: Bloomberg
Guest: Miguel Lorenzo, Senior VP of Sports Content, NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises
Co-Host/Reporter: Vanessa Perdomo Maglione, Bloomberg News Sports Business Reporter
Release Date: July 17, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into Telemundo’s massive World Cup success, exploring unprecedented U.S. Spanish-language viewership, the cultural and strategic factors behind it, and the future of soccer broadcasting across streaming and traditional platforms. Miguel Lorenzo shares insights on the unique excitement of a domestic World Cup, Telemundo’s approach to coverage, viewership strategies, and what’s next for soccer fans after the tournament.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The World Cup’s Unprecedented Reach in the U.S.

• Telemundo and Peacock’s Coverage:
  • Telemundo and Peacock offered comprehensive coverage across multiple platforms, reaching broad and diverse audiences.
  • The excitement was amplified by the World Cup being hosted in the United States for the first time since 1994.
  • “It’s hard to replicate that excitement, knowing that...in your communities, watch parties...it’s another level.” – Miguel Lorenzo [02:15]
• Viewership Stats:
  • Almost half of U.S. World Cup viewers watched at least some matches in Spanish, despite Hispanics making up roughly 20% of the U.S. population.
  • This highlights the appeal and accessibility of Spanish-language broadcasts, even to non-Spanish speakers.
  • “Nearly half of the World Cup audience in the United States has been on Telemundo and Peacock.” – Miguel Lorenzo [03:41]

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2. The Power of Talent and Iconic Coverage

• Andres Cantor’s Legendary Calls:
  • Andres Cantor’s signature “Goooooool” and passionate coverage are attracting even non-Spanish speakers.
  • “Even people who don’t speak Spanish are tuning in.” – Vanessa Perdomo Maglione [03:17]
  • Cantor’s emotional calls, especially of dramatic Argentina matches, have gone viral.
  • “He almost lost his voice!” – Vanessa Perdomo Maglione [04:14]
• Star-studded Commentary:
  • Telemundo’s on-air team includes former international stars (e.g., Andres Guardado, Carlos, Maxi Rodriguez), increasing authenticity and drawing in viewers.

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3. Anticipation for the Final: Spain vs Argentina

• A Dream Matchup:
  • First time since 1930 that two Spanish-speaking teams face off in the final.
  • Both are defending major continental titles (Argentina: World Champion, Spain: European Champion).
  • “This really does set up to be one of the greatest World Cup finals in history...these are two teams with massive followings, a tremendous history.” – Miguel Lorenzo [05:43]
• Expectations for Record Audiences:
  • Telemundo expects to break viewership records for this historic final. [05:43]

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4. Soccer Beyond the World Cup – Telemundo’s Ongoing Sports Coverage

• Other Soccer Properties:
  • Telemundo’s portfolio includes Liga MX, Bundesliga (just acquired), Premier League (with NBC), and rights to U.S. Men’s and Women’s National Teams.
  • Also home to the Olympics’ soccer events (2028).
  • “There is a lot of soccer coming down the pike even after this World Cup that we’re really excited about.” – Miguel Lorenzo [06:54]

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5. Streaming and Audience Crossover

• Viewers Sampling Other Content:
  • World Cup viewers on Telemundo and Peacock are exploring other offerings, including popular telenovelas like “El Señor de los Cielos.”
  • “We’ve seen a lot of World Cup audiences on Peacock sampling and trying other non-World Cup content, which is actually really impressive.” – Miguel Lorenzo [08:10]
• Promotional Integration:
  • Telemundo effectively cross-promotes new shows during sports broadcasts, building a loyal, bilingual audience base.

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6. The Rights Race and Focus on the Present

• Future World Cup Rights:
  • When asked about securing rights for future World Cups, Miguel focuses on the present:
    • “If I can quote a go-to athlete response, we’re taking it one day at a time and focusing on what we have in front of us these next two days.” – Miguel Lorenzo [09:20]
  • Special attention to the third-place match between France and England, deemed almost as compelling as the final.

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7. Audience Reception & Production Strategy

• Hydration Breaks – Ad Strategy:
  • Telemundo chose to keep coverage live during hydration breaks rather than inserting ads.
  • This has been positively received by viewers as a commitment to the game:
    • “We made a commitment to our audiences to stay on the feed as soon as the game starts, make sure that audiences don’t miss any moment of the action.” – Miguel Lorenzo [11:14]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On World Cup in the U.S.:
  • “A World cup that is a world away is still interesting to all audiences of soccer. But when it’s taking place in your country...it’s another level.” – Miguel Lorenzo [02:15]
• On Andres Cantor:
  • “Andres is a very important part of it...his calls of these various Argentina comebacks have been very viral.” – Miguel Lorenzo [03:41]
• On Cross-Promotion:
  • “There might be some agreements...some trade-offs because it’s a lot of commitments for soccer this summer.” – Miguel Lorenzo [08:10]
• On Viewer-first Philosophy:
  • “It’s actually one of the many things that audiences have come back to us as positive sentiment around our World Cup coverage...our hydration break strategy.” – Miguel Lorenzo [11:14]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [02:15] – Miguel on historic U.S. audience engagement and the impact of a domestic World Cup
• [03:41] – Influence of Andres Cantor and Telemundo’s star-studded casting
• [05:43] – Anticipation and viewership predictions for the Spain vs Argentina final
• [06:54] – Overview of Telemundo’s ongoing soccer programming post-World Cup
• [08:10] – Discussion on audience crossover to telenovelas and other network content
• [09:20] – Strategy on future World Cup rights and broadcast focus
• [11:14] – Rationale for not running ads during hydration breaks; audience feedback

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Overall Tone & Closing

The conversation is lively, insightful, and driven by both enthusiasm for the sport and a clear appreciation for Telemundo’s audience-centric approach. The hosts and guests share mutual excitement about the growth of soccer viewership and the unique connection between sports, culture, and entertainment in Spanish-language broadcasting in the U.S.

Vanessa Perdomo Maglione: “I’m going to go into depression.” – On the World Cup ending [12:02]
Host: “There’ll be more football.” [12:05]

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Summary Takeaway

Telemundo’s World Cup coverage in 2026 has made history in the U.S., with a combination of compelling live sports, cultural resonance, charismatic broadcasting, and savvy cross-platform engagement—cementing its status as both a soccer hub and a bilingual entertainment powerhouse.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

Bloomberg Audio Studios Podcasts, Radio news. Hard to believe the World cup wrapping up this weekend. I kind of can't get my head around it.

[C]

Who are you rooting for? Are you allowed to say

[B]

no, I'm not gonna say. Sebastian, who should I be rooting for?

[C]

Spain. Give Spain a chance, okay?

[B]

Give spanning a chance.

[C]

If you already won, just. Well, I have to say recently it's

[B]

been fun to be around the newsroom. People are watching everywhere. They're watching their phones, streaming networks, you name it. And as AP reports, every match of the tournament has been available for US viewers in English on Fox or FS1 or Telemundo or Universo in Spanish. And there are streaming options such as Fox one or Peacock. And what caught our attention from this AP story? Thank you, Sebastian, for pointing it out for us? That the American Spanish language TV network owned by NBCUniversal, we're talking about Telemundo points to Nielsen ratings to show that roughly half the World cup viewers in the United States have watched at least some portion of some matches in Spanish. We wanted to know more. So joining us to talk about it is Miguel Lorenzo. He's senior vice president of sports content at NBC Universal Telemundo Enterprises. He joins us from New Jersey. Also with us is our Vanessa Perdomo Maglion. She is Bloomberg News sports business reporter, co host of the Business of Sports podcast. She joins us right here in our studio.

[D]

Welcome.

[B]

Welcome, Miguel. Great to have you here. Sounds like it's been a great run this round of the World Cup. Tell us about the ratings, who's watching and how do you know that roughly half of the World cup viewers in the US have watched at least some portion of some matches in Spanish. Talk to us about that.

[E]

Sure. Well, thank you for having me. The audience in this World cup has been an amazing story and I think it speaks to many things. It speaks to certainly Telemundo and Peacock's coverage of the World cup across many different platforms. I think it also speaks to The World cup tournament itself, whether it's the expanded field where there's more teams and there's more games, the legends like Messi and Ronaldo, the stars of the World Cup. And we can't discount the fact that it's a World cup taking place in our backyard, in our communities. And a World cup that is a world away is still interesting to all audiences of soccer. But when it's taking place in your country, it's hard to replicate that excitement, knowing that whether there's matches in your city, you know, in your communities, watch parties, there's just. It's another level to it that we haven't seen since the last World cup here in 1994. And certainly, whether it's on social media or through our coverage, the response from audiences with these matches have been amazing.

[D]

Miguel, obviously, one of the things we can't ignore when we're talking about Telemundo is the iconic voice of Andres Cantor. I mean, everyone knows that. Go. You know, everyone. Everyone knows what that is, and everyone knows from. Do you think that's one of the reasons why people are so invested to tune into Telemundo because even people who don't speak Spanish are tuning in?

[E]

Absolutely. You know, Hispanics are about 20% of the US population, yet as you mentioned, nearly half of the World cup audience in the United States has been on Telemundo and Peacock. And so the excitement and the passion that our talent and that our production brings, Andres Cantor certainly being one of them, it's certainly one of the reasons why audiences are watching on Telemundo. You know, Andres is a very important part of it. And certainly, you know, his calls of these various Argentina comebacks have been very viral.

[D]

But the last one, he almost lost his voice.

[E]

I love that joke with him. Like, he needs to really make sure he's taking care of his, you know, drink some honey and some lemon. We gotta save you. There's a lot of games to go through, but, you know, it's been him, it's been other talent on the team. I mean, we've had some major names join our team, whether it's Andres, Guardado, Carlos, These are big names with the Mexican national team that have played with. With that team. And we saw when Mexico beat Ecuador, the Mexican team came over and started throwing them up into the. Into the air in celebration. So there's been so many great moments like this. Maxi Rodriguez is another one that Messi has given him, like, a celebratory hug before every game. It's worked out it's been good luck because obviously Argentina has made it this far. So when you look at all of our talent and all the excitement that they bring and the passion into that coverage, and that's just not just during the game, but everything before and after and everything happening across our platforms, it's no surprise that to us that audiences are gravitating towards our coverage and watching these matches on Telemundo.

[C]

Hey, Miguel. So the Spain vs Argentina match. This is featuring two Spanish speaking teams facing off in the World cup for the first time World cup final since 1930. What are the expectations? Are we going to see record viewership? Just talk a little bit about, you know, what to expect for the game.

[E]

Yeah, I mean any World cup final is a dream scenario, but it's extra special for Telemundo and our audiences at the final features Argentina and Spain. I mean, these are two teams with massive followings, a tremendous history. It's the defending world champions against the defending European champions. That's never happened before. You know, the possession dominance of Spain, the overwhelming will of Argentina, and of course, arguably the Goat Messi. You know, Spain is the slight favorite, but I don't see how you can doubt this Argentina team with the way that they've come back so many times in this World Cup. This really does set up to be one of the greatest World cup finals in history. And we certainly think we're going to set some records in this final come Sunday.

[D]

Miguel, after the World cup you know, finishes up, we're going to be very sad. I'm going to be very sad. But obviously, you know, we're going into the rest of the soccer season. Telemundo has some Liga MX games as well as just signed a deal with Bundesliga to have some Spanish speaking know tele telecast for that league. Tell us about all the other soccer people can tune into on Telemundo once the World cup is over.

[E]

Absolutely. I mean, Telemundo is home of the biggest sporting events in the world. Obviously now with with the World cup we have the Summer Olympics in 2028, which of course include men's and women's soccer. We're the home of Premier League along with NBC Sports. You mentioned Bundesliga, which we announced earlier this week. We have a couple of teams in Liga, Max, Chivas, Digres and Juarez. And Telemundo is also the Spanish language home of U.S. soccer for the men's and the women's team. So there is a lot of soccer coming down the pike even after this World cup that we're really excited about. And having not just Telemundo Universal, but Peacock as our streaming platform, to be able to distribute all of this high class and elite soccer properties for our audiences is something that we're excited about.

[B]

All right, so I've got to ask you, and this is courtesy of our Sebastian Escobar, because there is this running joke, as you know, Miguel, I think on social media that all the English speaking fans who switched to Telemundo for the World cup are now hooked on their primetime telenovela, El Senor de los Cielos.

[E]

Very nice.

[D]

Are you.

[B]

Thank you Mucho Sanyos. Yo studio, are you tracking this telenovela fan crossover? I'm just curious. And Sebastian, by the way, is a fan of the show. I did not know that about him. But anyway, are you tracking this crossover?

[E]

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, if you've seen our World cup coverage, we certainly were promoting De los Hieros, Operacion Triumpho, El Turco, a bunch of Spanish properties that are really important for Telemundo that launched on July 7th. So we're certainly tracking it. There's been a lot of great crossover from World cup audiences watching these properties on Telemundo and even also on Peacock itself. We've seen a lot of World cup audiences on Peacock sampling and trying other non World cup content, which is actually really impressive when you think about it, because 104 games, that's a lot of commitment for World cup soccer fans to watch. That's a lot of hours of soccer. There's not a lot of time left in the day. And so they're still finding time to watch these other properties. You know, there might be some, some agreements there with wives and husbands, some trade offs because it's a lot of commitments for, for soccer this summer. But we're absolutely, we're absolutely tracking that and it's been great to see.

[C]

So after this World cup winds down,

[B]

speaking of commitments,

[C]

what are you guys going to be thinking about for the next few World cup cups? Is Telemundo interested in securing the media rights for the next one, the one after that?

[E]

Right now we're just focused on producing Sunday's World cup final. And let's not forget we also have a third place match. We've talked about the final, but we do have a game tomorrow in Miami between France and England. So our focus is there. If I can maybe Sebastian will, will appreciate this, but if I can quote a go to athlete response. We're taking it one day at a time and we're focusing on what we have in front of us these next two days.

[D]

Miguel, I think one of the other interesting things when we're talking about France and England is that that game is just as competitive almost as this Spain and Argentina game. Some people saying that it actually could be the final. Do you expect to see viewership for that as well as you? Just as high as the final?

[F]

Almost.

[E]

Well, I don't know that we would see it just as high as the final. The final is on its. Its own level, but we're certainly going to see tremendous audiences for the third place matchup. And I think for a lot of reasons. One, as you mentioned, it's England and it's France. These are two elite teams. They have some of the biggest stars in the world, whether it's Mbappe or Harry Kane or Jude Bellingham. One of the other things that we've seen in this World cup is the tremendous viewership that we've seen across these 104 games. Ultimately, has it been tied to one particular team? You know, absolutely. We've seen record and historic numbers for Mexico, for Team usa, but it's really been across multiple teams. It really speaks to the quality of play in this World Cup. You know, matches with England have set records. I mean, Cape Verde, Gabo Verde, those were some of the best World cup matches in this tournament. And before the World Cup, a lot of people didn't even know where they are in a map. So, yeah, we definitely expect great audiences for this matchup tomorrow between England and. And France. But, you know, the World Cup Final, it's in its own category.

[B]

Hey, Miguel, just got about 30 seconds left here. Any regret not cashing in on the hydration breaks and running ads during them?

[E]

None at all. We have monetized the hydration breaks, and we made a commitment to our audiences to stay on the feed as soon as the game starts, make sure that audiences don't miss any moment of the action. And it's actually one of the many things that audiences have come back to us as positive sentiment around our World cup coverage, whether it's our production, our talent, our hydration break strategy. So we're really happy with everything that has gone down for the World cup as it relates to our production and our strategic decisions.

[B]

Listen, thank you so much. We know it's a busy time for you guys, especially as we head into this final weekend. So, muchas gracias. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Be well, Miguel. Miguel Lorenzo, he's Senior VP of Sports content at NBC Universo Universal, Telemundo Enterprises, joining us there from New Jersey. And of course, Vanessa. I know. What are you going to do after this?

[D]

I'm going to go into depression.

[B]

There'll be more football.

[D]

You know, the Women's World Cup 2027, Brazil. We're ready.

[B]

Vanessa Perdomo Maglione. She is, of course, Bloomberg News sports business reporter and co host of the Business of Sports podcast. Check it out. It's on the Bloomberg, on the terminal, and also wherever you get your podcast.

[F]

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