Host Broadcast Services Drives Transcontinental Transmission, Production for CONCACAF Gold Cup Game Creek trucks, GCV Anywhere workflow handle 10-venue, 31-match tourney By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital
Friday, July 30, 2021 - 10:29 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
A summer loaded with international soccer tournaments will see the crowning of another continental champion on Sunday when the U.S. and Mexico meet in the CONCACAF Gold Cup Final (8:30 p.m. ET, FS1, Univision, TUDN) at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. The match caps a comprehensive, month-long production and operational effort marked by innovations in workflow, live video, and digital-content delivery.
As has been the case for the past few iterations of this tournament, CONCACAF tapped Host Broadcast Services (HBS) - the organization that produces major global soccer events like the FIFA men's and women's World Cup and the UEFA European Championship - to manage all technical, editorial, booking, and crewing efforts for the 2021 Gold Cup. HBS is also driving new efforts in digital and ENG coverage.
Sebastian Von Freyberg is one of the producers and directors who have called the 31 matches of the CONCACAF Gold Cup produced by Host Broadcast Services. He will direct the Gold Cup Final on Sunday.
Sunday's final will be the tech-jammed conclusion of a tournament for which CONCACAF and HBS will have produced 31 matches in 10 venues across the U.S.
Highlighting the effort are advances in transmission and video delivery with Game Creek Video's deployment of its GCV Anywhere platform. Also, some of the vendor's newest IP-centric mobile units - GCV Bravo, Columbia, Gridiron, Celtic and Gotham - were deployed, and a customized remote-production center was built in its Hudson, NH, facility. CONCACAF's Additional Content Feed (ACF), which offered more digital and ENG content to rightsholders and club media teams, and EVS replay for the tournament were operated from there.
MORE: Game Creek Video's GCV Anywhere' Platform Makes Live Media Production Happen at a Distance for CONCACAF Gold Cup and More
At the tournament's peak during the Group Stage, GCV Anywhere was supporting multiple productions occurring simultaneously in Orlando, Dallas, and Kansas City. Twenty-four channels of H.265-encoded 1080/60p HDR video were transported to the New Hampshire facility to feed seven remote EVS operators, three EVS operators, three EVS IPDirectors, and 12 intercom positions there.
Each Group Stage match of this year's Gold Cup was captured by 23 or 24 cameras. In the Knockout Rounds, that number was boosted to 26-28.
The one thing that I really appreciate when we're on the road and are working long hours is the great attitude of the [Game Creek Video] people, says Oscar Sanchez, director, broadcast operations/executive producer, CONCACAF. The engineers in the truck, everybody on the Game Creek side has been so good, and their units are in such good shape.
CONCACAF and HBS also tapped VISTA Worldlink's popular at-home production facility in Dania Beach, FL, to serve as its Broadcast Operations Center (BOC) and integrated graphics and commentary for rightsholders in the U.S. (Fox Sports, Univision, TUDN), Canada (OneSoccer), Mexico (Televisa, TV Azteca), and Central America. Vista Worldlink Director, Sales, Marc Beckmeier served as project leader.
Sanchez notes that, throughout the tournament, a 1080p HDR feed has been produced in the truck onsite but not transmitted because of a lack of interest from the various rightsholders. Instead, the signal delivered is 1080i SDR.
Game Creek Video's IP-centric Bravo, Columbia, Gridiron, Celtic, and Gotham were onsite at the 10 venues hosting matches.
Where there has been increased demand by broadcast partners is in cloud distribution. As a result, HBS sought out the services of The Switch and, through its Mimic cloud-services platform, initiated fiber transmission from the match venues to the BOC for distribution to rightsholders. The Switch SVP, Sales, Rick Behar played a key role as project leader.
We've been exploring this coming into this tournament, and we've been extremely happy with it, says Sanchez, noting that CONCACAF Technical and Transmission Director Dario Boronat has overseen the effort. This isn't the future. This is the now.
In terms of production gear, each Group Stage match was covered by 23 or 24 cameras. In the Knockout Rounds, that number was boosted to 26-28. At least three super-slow-motion cameras were committed to each of the 31 matches. Cable-cam systems from Spidercam and Skycam were rigged up at most of the stadiums, and 3G Wireless handled signal delivery for all RF video and audio solutions.
The GCV Anywhere remote-production operation for the Gold Cup was built at Game Creek's facility in Hudson, NH.
One of the biggest challenges of this year's event was crewing. Typically, CONCACAF and HBS bring in front-bench talent from across the globe to produce the event, which is second in stature in this part of the planet only to the FIFA World Cup. That wasn't feasible given the many travel restrictions still in place and in flux as the industry continues to cope with COVID-19 restrictions.
Even so, CONCACAF and HBS were able to recruit a highly respectable stable of directors, producers, and coordinating producers to oversee the live broadcasts: Ken Neal, Glen Wilhem, Dacio Alonso, Javier Estrada, Shaw Brown, Sebastian Von Freyberg, Ute Goser, Jeff Straus, Kristin Hennessey, Riki Van Steeden, and Laszlo Szele.
We have a strong culture of soccer production in the U.S. right now, says Sanchez. The people that work with us [regularly] are fantastic.
On Sunday, Von Freyberg will direct alongside Goser in the producer chair.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
06/05/2026
Gravity Media Chief RF Communications Engineer Glenn Willems uses Wisycom RF over Fiber and wireless solutions across major cycling events and international mar...
06/05/2026
A Sennheiser Spectera module is now available in Bitfocus Companion and Buttons, enabling direct integration of Spectera with the two software platforms. The mo...
06/05/2026
Ted Turner, the visionary media entrepreneur whose appetite for disruption helpe...
06/05/2026
Peacock is going all-in on the beautiful game - streaming all 104 FIFA World Cup...
06/05/2026
New pricing tiers for vocal/dialogue restoration tool
NoiseWorks Audio's AI-powered vocal and dialogue processing plug-in is now available in three diff...
06/05/2026
Popular mixing & routing software overhauled
Following a recent public beta test, RME have launched the final release version of the powerful mixing and rou...
06/05/2026
New SOS Video Feature
Focusrites ISA C8X is a milestone product that brings together the companys analogue heritage and their expertise in digital audio. Yo...
06/05/2026
Polands Miecznik-class frigates are part of the largest contract in Polish shipbuilding history. (Image Credit: PGZ Stocznia Wojenna)...
06/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/05/2026
Riedel Communications today announced the expansion of its leadership structure as part of a strategic initiative to strengthen both its operational management ...
06/05/2026
For nearly three decades, Veteran Production Sound Mixer and Five-time Emmy Award Winner Dirk Sciarrotta has helped define the sonic identity of the long-runnin...
06/05/2026
ZEISS CinCraft LensCore: Cinema Lens Looks for Compositing
Brie Clayton May 6, 2026
0 Comments
ZEISS announces the launch of CinCraft LensCore, a nove...
06/05/2026
Wisycom Solves Extreme RF Challenges Across Miles of Live Action for Gravity Med...
06/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/05/2026
Narrative Entertainment has partnered with Encompass to deliver high-quality subtitling of its Great! network content using the Altitude Intelligence AI assiste...
06/05/2026
SipRadius, widely recognized for making content processing and connectivity secure and seamless, is proud to launch a dramatic new approach to AI content creati...
06/05/2026
When the broadband and media industry gathers at ANGA COM in Cologne from May 19 to 21, Big Blue Marble will be at the forefront. The international broadcast an...
06/05/2026
Cinegy GmbH, a leading developer of software-defined television technology, is proud to exhibit at MPTS for the first time. Visitors to the stand will discover ...
06/05/2026
Val Jeanty Receives 2026 Doris Duke Artist Award Jeanty, a composer, percussionist, and turntablist, is the fourth Berklee recipient of the prestigious award ...
06/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
06/05/2026
When live cycling races and international marathons stretch for miles across cities and countryside, there is no margin for RF failure in live broadcast. As Chi...
06/05/2026
Oberkochen/Germany, May 5, 2026
ZEISS announces the launch of CinCraft LensCore, a novel solution for creating physically based cinematic lens looks for visual...
06/05/2026
06 May 2026
VEON's Kyivstar Authorized to Resell Starlink for Businesses & ...
06/05/2026
UKTV has secured the exclusive rights to the early back catalogue of iconic Australian drama series Neighbours, following a landmark content deal with Fremantle...
06/05/2026
Wednesday 6 May 2026
Sky commissions feature documentary to mark 10th anniversa...
06/05/2026
Wednesday 6 May 2026
Sky and Formula 1 agree long-term partnership across UK, Ireland and Italy
Sky in the UK & Ireland to remain the home of Formula 1 until ...
06/05/2026
Sky Zero Footprint Fund-backed TV campaign launches nationwide, supported by new...
06/05/2026
Wuppertal May 6, 2026
Riedel Expands Leadership Structure, Appoints Marc Engro...
06/05/2026
SAN JOSE, Calif. - May 6, 2026 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced its latest broadband innovations for ANGA COM 2026, highlighting its vision for a new e...
06/05/2026
Statement from Rupert Murdoch, Chairman Emeritus, Fox Corporation on Ted Turner&...
06/05/2026
Friday 8 May on RT One and RT Player
Meet the NSPCA team caring for and protecting animals in need in this six-part series
Fly on the wall, six-part series...
06/05/2026
The race to build the world's most powerful AI factories demands networking ...
06/05/2026
How changes to proteins can alter drug interactions for new precision therapies Scripps Research team maps how chemical modifications to proteins affect drug bi...
05/05/2026
Experts from the world of academia, tech, business, politics and media convened for a Thomson Talks at the Cambridge Disinformation Summit in April. It's th...
05/05/2026
Three phones were hardwired for power and transmission to the truck; camera feat...
05/05/2026
The creative studio behind campaigns for the NBA, Fanatics Sportsbook & Casino, ...
05/05/2026
Nielsen has announced results from a co-viewing pilot program covering February&...
05/05/2026
viztrick AiDi, an on-device AI solution developed by Nippon TV, delivered global...
05/05/2026
ARRI has announced Omnibar, a battery-powered, IP65-rated multi-color LED linear...
05/05/2026
Imagine Communications has announced that France T l visions is the first broadc...
05/05/2026
The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and Bell Media today announced a multiyear agreement to broadcast and stream WNBA games in Canada beginni...
Host Broadcast Services Drives Transcontinental Transmission, Production for CONCACAF Gold Cup Game Creek trucks, GCV Anywhere workflow handle 10-venue, 31-match tourney By Brandon Costa, Director of Digital 
