MIAMI (AP) — Ashleigh Hallam teaches English as a second language at her local library in Indiana. Soccer is now teaching her Spanish as a second language.For her, this World Cup couldn’t make more sense.Hallam is among a sizable number of English-speaking people in the U.S. who are doing something these days that might be considered a bit surprising: They’re watching broadcasts of World Cup matches in Spanish on Telemundo, even though they have little idea — or in some cases, no idea — what the announcers are saying.“I can’t really understand everything they’re saying on Telemundo because they’re speaking in Spanish,” Hallam said. “But you understand what’s going on.”The math is simple. Census figures show that about 20% of the U.S. is Hispanic, yet Telemundo points to Nielsen ratings to show that roughly half the World Cup viewers in the U.S. have watched at least some portion of some matches in Spanish. Every match of the tournament has been available for U.S. viewers in English on Fox or FS1, on Telemundo or Universo in Spanish, and there are streaming options such as Fox One or Peacock.Among the reasons commonly cited by viewers who spoke with The Associated Press in recent days: A fascination with famed broadcaster Andrés Cantor’s “¡goooooool!” call. Telemundo doesn’t cut away for commercials (as Fox does) during the much-maligned hydration breaks. The broadcasts, some simply find, are more entertaining. And in other cases, it’s a cost-based decision: Peacock, which includes Telemundo, is lower-priced than Fox One.
In any language: English speakers are tuning into World Cup broadcasts in Spanish
Ashleigh Hallam teaches English at her local library in Indiana. She's brushing up on her Spanish by watching the World Cup.












