Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Live From FIFA World Cup: Telemundo SVP, Content Operations, Chris Suarez-Meyers Discusses Global Effort

08/12/2022

Live From FIFA World Cup: Telemundo SVP, Content Operations, Chris Suarez-Meyers Discusses Global Effort A team in Doha and one in Miami collaborate to provide U.S. viewers all the action from Qatar By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director

Thursday, December 8, 2022 - 9:57 am

Print This Story

The Telemundo Deportes 2022 World Cup efforts literally span the globe. The broadcaster's Miami-based Telemundo Center produces content 24/7, and its Doha-based team ensures that it gets everything it needs to deliver for Spanish-language viewers in the U.S.

Telemundo's Jorge Duarte (left) and Chris Suarez-Meyers at the World Cup IBC in Doha

We are not doing anything other than pushing signals home, to Miami, where we have three production-control rooms managing over-the-air, cable, and our Peacock productions, says Chris Suarez-Meyers, SVP, content operations, Telemundo Deportes, who is onsite. We're pretty much quality control, pass-through, and routing.

At full strength, the team at the IBC comprises about 80 members and works in a space very similar in size to the one the team had in Russia for the 2018 World Cup. Production-control rooms and other content-creation and -playout areas in Miami receive signals from the IBC that originate from a variety of sources: the HBS multi-lateral feeds, studio operations throughout Doha, ENG crews. The team in Doha is almost as culturally diverse as the World Cup teams themselves, with Telemundo staffers hailing from 29 countries.

In Miami, says Suarez-Meyers, things run around the clock between over-the-air, digital, and streaming, and the post work never stops. Coming out of the elections right into World Cup mode is a big swing for the technical teams in [Miami], but so far so good. They're professionals and are handling it like champs.

From day one, he adds, the decision was to push all the audio and video signals to Miami. That includes all HBS feeds, as well as unilateral cameras, signals from bookable positions at the venues, from the studios, Fan Fest, and even the unilateral hotel position inside the Souq Waqif marketplace.

The biggest change from previous World Cups is the smaller overall footprint of the World Cup, with stadiums only a quick drive apart.

Having everyone in one city has proven to be a huge force multiplier, Suarez-Meyers notes. We can scale up, scale down, and move people around with a quick WhatsApp message. We can change plans without having to wait for people to land in outer cities or figure out a logistics plan. It's, Hey, I need three extra ENG crews to go to LuSail Stadium or I need two crews to go to the match- minus-one training. The fact that [the crews are] wearing LiveU backpacks and everything is sent back to Miami in an instant has made things a lot easier and more flexible for us.

The benefits extend well beyond giving the production team more flexibility: it helps keep the team fresher. It's less wear and tear on the team, he says, because they don't have to pack, get on a plane, unpack, get in a small car, drive to the stadium, wait in line. It makes things a lot easier, and they can always come back to their bed, and that goes a long way.

According to Jorge Duarte, senior director, product engineering, Telemundo Deportes, Ooredoo provides connectivity within Qatar, and ATT provides redundant long-haul fiber services via London and Frankfurt. Everything we planned for worked out the way we intended it to, and latency wasn't an issue, so we're doing everything from Miami. We expected some hurdles but we haven't had any.

Although HDR coverage isn't making it to viewers, it is being sent to Miami for testing. Everything in-bound to us from HBS is in 1080p HDR, Duarte explains. We convert it down to SDR and HDR. We also decided not to go 2110 this time around. We go back to baseband for transmission as it didn't make a whole lot of sense given what we're doing here.

Telemundo's IBC facility has a dedicated VAR room, where referees can see all the feeds the officials see, and a flash position with a robotic camera controlled from Miami and able to be fired up at a moment's notice.

We just put [the referee] in front of the [flash-position] camera and call Miami, which takes control of it, says Suarez-Meyers. If there is a controversial play, [the referee] can come out of their booth for halftime or postmatch, stand in front of the camera, and get their analysis on-air.

Telemundo's broadcast-operations area in Doha is much larger than its facility in Russia as there is no production control room this time around. At the front bench, three BOC techs rotate morning, day, and night and also check the commentary cameras at each stadium.

We have commentary positions at all 64 matches all eight venues, says Suarez-Meyers. As the games get more important, we'll have more activations inside the stadiums. We also have a permanent studio position at Lusail Stadium.

The team at the IBC coordinates with Miami to ensure that the team there knows everything they are supposed to receive and are receiving it properly.

We also have returns from Miami so we can see what they're seeing, adds Duarte. Everything is also being recorded back home; we do have very limited recording here for troubleshooting purposes.

The IBC is connected to the studio at the HBS Outside Presentation Facility, which has a main studio and a presentation platform overlooking the Corniche. Telemundo also has a stage at the Fan Festival, with a roaming camera, and another stage in a hotel.
LINK: https://www.sportsvideo.org/2022/12/08/live-from-the-fifa-world-cup-te...
See more stories from svg

North America Stories

31/10/2025

IAB Urges Standards for CTV Ad Measurement

NEW YORK The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) today released a new industry guide that discusses the urgency of adopting new standards that will help advert...

31/10/2025

Late Night Shows Thrive on Social Media with Billions of Views in 2025

While some analysts have questioned the ongoing economic viability of late night shows on broadcast TV amid ongoing declines in linear viewing, new data from Tu...

31/10/2025

Berklee Celebrates the Inauguration of President Jim Lucchese

Berklee Celebrates the Inauguration of President Jim Lucchese In his inaugural address, Lucchese highlighted Berklee's power to connect, create, and heal ...

31/10/2025

Korea Joins AI Industrial Revolution: NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang Unveils Historic Partnership at APEC Summit

Amidst Gyeongju, South Korea's ancient temples and modern skylines, Jensen H...

30/10/2025

SVG Students To Watch: Sam Newitt, Kansas State University

SVG Students To Watch: Sam Newitt, Kansas State UniversityThe South Dakota native thrives in many roles behind the scenes at K-StateHD.TVBy Brandon Costa, Direc...

30/10/2025

SVG Sit-Down: Swerve Sports' Christy Tanner Explores the Young FAST Channel's Early Success

SVG Sit-Down: Swerve Sports' Christy Tanner Explores the Young FAST Channel&...

30/10/2025

SVG Campus Shot Callers: Andy Liebsch, Senior Director, Video Services, Kansas State University

SVG Campus Shot Callers: Andy Liebsch, Senior Director, Video Services, Kansas S...

30/10/2025

Diversified Names Paul Lidsky CEO, Expanding Leadership Role After Serving as Board Chairman

Diversified Names Paul Lidsky CEO, Expanding Leadership Role After Serving as Bo...

30/10/2025

NBA, Cosm Enter Long-Term Partnership for Shared Reality Production, Distribution

NBA, Cosm Enter Long-Term Partnership for Shared Reality Production, Distributio...

30/10/2025

FanDuel Sports Network to Deliver Select Live NBA, NHL Games to Major Streaming Services for In-Market Viewers

FanDuel Sports Network to Deliver Select Live NBA, NHL Games to Major Streaming ...

30/10/2025

If I Had Legs, I'd Kick You, East of Wall, and More Sundance Institute-Supported Films Nominated for 35th Gotham Awards

As the year comes to a close, we can feel the invigorating wind sweeping in for ...

30/10/2025

Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Max Walker-Silverman, the Writer-Director of Rebuilding

By Bailey Pennick One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festi...

30/10/2025

Remarks for the 2025 APEC CEO Roundtable

Jon Rambeau, President of Integrated Mission Systems at L3Harris Technologies, speaks about industrial collaboration at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (A...

30/10/2025

L3Harris Technologies Reports Strong Third Quarter 2025 Results, Increases 2025 Guidance

MELBOURNE, Fla., October 30, 2025 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) reports th...

30/10/2025

FCC's Brendan Carr Issues Draft Proposal for More C-Band Spectrum Sales

WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr said he has circulated a proposal for the agency to auction additional midband spectrum in the U...

30/10/2025

Diversified Names Paul Lidsky as CEO

PLANO, Texas Technology solutions provider Diversified has named Paul Lidsky as CEO, tasked with guiding the company's next stage of growth, driving market ...

30/10/2025

Interra Adds Stream Recording, BATON Integration to ORION

CUPERTINO, Calif. Interra Systems today unveiled ORION stream recording support and seamless integration with BATON Media Player, a combination that lets broadc...

30/10/2025

InterDigital Buys AI-Driven Video Codec Startup Deep Render

WILMINGTON, Del. InterDigital today announced the acquisition of Deep Render, an artificial intelligence startup with a team of AI experts focused on video code...

30/10/2025

TAG Video Systems Earns Two ESG Recognitions

NEW YORK TAG Video Systems has earned a higher-rated Digital Product Passport (DPP) Committed to Sustainability badge and the Aclymate Climate Wise Silver Tier ...

30/10/2025

Nexstar Extends Employment Agreement with Perry Sook Through 2029

IRVING, Texas As station groups move into an era that promises rapid tech, regulatory and economic changes, the Nexstar Media Group, Inc. has announced that its...

30/10/2025

Samba TV: 60% Of TV Time Spent Viewing Streaming Content

Television viewers are spending more time watching streaming content than linear TV, but sports continues to be a bright spot for broadcasters, according to the...

30/10/2025

Operative Media Names Mike Napadano as CEO

NEW YORK Advertising technology company Operative Media has named Mike Napadano as its new CEO....

30/10/2025

Walmart Selects Marshall Cameras to Power New Campus Broa...

Walmart Inc. has chosen Marshall Electronics cameras for use across its brand-new corporate campus studios and event center. The installation includes Marshall ...

30/10/2025

NETGEAR Academy Expands Into Industry-Wide IP Training Pl...

NETGEAR, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTGR), a global leader in intelligent networking solutions designed to power extraordinary experiences, today announced the launch of its...

30/10/2025

Clear-Com Gen-IC Virtual Intercom Connects Students World...

Clear-Com recently contributed its award-winning Gen-IC virtual intercom solution to power real-time communications for On-Air Student TV, a 24-hour global st...

30/10/2025

Maxon Strengthens Growth Strategy with Appointment of Kse...

Maxon, maker of powerful, approachable software solutions for creators working in 2D and 3D design, motion graphics, visual effects, and more, today announced t...

30/10/2025

Studio Technologies Dante Enabled Model 394 GPI Interface...

Studio Technologies, a leading manufacturer of high-quality audio, video, and fiber-optic solutions, announces that its new Model 394 GPI Interface and Model 39...

30/10/2025

Astro selects Broadpeak for high performance streaming an...

Broadpeak , a leader in streaming and monetization at scale, has been selected by leading Malaysian content and entertainment company Astro to enable two major ...

30/10/2025

Riedel Communications Appoints Ulrich Voigt as Director L...

Riedel Communications is pleased to announce that Ulrich Voigt has joined the company as Director Live Production Solutions, taking over the SimplyLive business...

30/10/2025

LiveU and Kinetiq Launch Cloud Native Watermarking Integr...

LiveU, the global leader in live IP-video contribution, production, and distribution, today announced a new partnership with Kinetiq, the AI-powered platform un...

30/10/2025

FCC Plans Nov. 20 Open Meeting, Provides Shutdown Update

WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr has called for an end to the government shutdown while providing some updates on the agency'...

30/10/2025

Carr Issues Draft Proposal for More C-Band Spectrum Sales

WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr has announced that he has circulated a proposal for the FCC to auction additional mid-band spect...

30/10/2025

October 29, 2025

Scripps Research professor awarded $3.2 million to advance type 1 diabetes research Support from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Dis...

30/10/2025

AI-Powered Mobile Clinics Deliver Breast Cancer Screening to India's Rural Communities

An unassuming van driving around rural India uses powerful AI technology that...

30/10/2025

Join the Resistance: ARC Raiders' Launches in the Cloud

Get ready, raiders - the wait is over. ARC Raiders is dropping onto GeForce NOW and bringing the fight from orbit to the screen. To celebrate the launch, gamer...

29/10/2025

MLS, EDGE Sound Research To Debut Immersive Embodied Sound' at LAFC vs. Austin FC Playoff Match

MLS, EDGE Sound Research To Debut Immersive Embodied Sound' at LAFC vs. Aus...

29/10/2025

SVG Remote Production Forum 2025: All Sessions Now Available to Watch on SVG PLAY

SVG Remote Production Forum 2025: All Sessions Now Available to Watch on SVG PLA...

29/10/2025

World Series 2025: How Audio Is Transported Around the Sites and Beyond

World Series 2025: How Audio Is Transported Around the Sites and BeyondThe signals also move not just between two countries but around the globeBy Dan Daley, Au...

29/10/2025

Inside the Archives: Celebrating Archives Month Through Sundance Film Festival Films

A still from 306 Hollywood, a film by sibling filmmakers Jonathan Bogar n and El...

29/10/2025

Riedel Names Ulrich Voigt Director of Live Production Solutions

WUPPERTAL, Germany Riedel Communications has hired Ulrich Voigt as director, live production solutions, taking over the leadership of its SimplyLive business fr...

29/10/2025

Sinclair Taps Mark Martin to Lead Stations in Oklahoma

OKLAHOMA CITY and TULSA, Okla. Sinclair has named Mark Martin as vice president and general manager of KOKH-KOCB Oklahoma City and KTUL Tulsa....

29/10/2025

iSpot Taps Julie Van Ullen as President and Chief Revenue Officer

BELLEVUE, Wash. Julie Van Ullen has joined cross-platform TV ad measurement company iSpot as president and chief revenue officer....

29/10/2025

Lawo Delivers Audio, IP Infrastructure for New Swiss OB Vehicle

Brutal g et, a Swiss broadcast services provider, has rolled out a state-of-the-art outside broadcast (OB) vehicle built on a Lawo AoIP (audio-over-internet pro...

29/10/2025

FCC Commissioner Olivia Trusty Announces Temporary Staff Changes

WASHINGTON FCC Commissioner Olivia Trusty has announced a temporary staff change in her office....

29/10/2025

Berklee Valencia Talent Helps Score Alejandro Amenbar's El cautivo

Berklee Valencia Talent Helps Score Alejandro Amen bar's El cautivo Faculty and alumni from Berklee Valencia's scoring for film, television, and video...

29/10/2025

Disney Takes Ownership of Fubo

The Walt Disney Company today announced they have closed their transaction to combine Fubo's business with Disney's Hulu + Live TV business....

29/10/2025

Ulrich Voigt

WUPPERTAL, Germany Riedel Communications has hired Ulrich Voigt as director, live production solutions, taking over the leadership of its SimplyLive business fr...

29/10/2025

MLS To Unveil Immersive Embodied Sound' During Playoff Match

LOS ANGELES Major League Soccer will introduce a broadcast audio enhancement tonight during the LAFC vs. Austin FC playoff match....

29/10/2025

ESPN, Sony Ink Deal to Expand Animated Altcasts for 2025-26

ESPN said it will produce animated telecasts for NFL, NHL, NBA and WNBA games across The Walt Disney Co. and ESPN platforms during the 2025-26 season under an a...