Giovanni Canales only knows one way to watch the World Cup: In Spanish on Telemundo.
Canales, 24, was raised in Rhode Island by a father who formerly played for the Honduran national team. And in his household, the Spanish-language network’s spirited soccer commentary, with sportscaster Andrés Cantor’s signature cries of “goooooooool,” are essential to the viewing experience. Never mind that Canales doesn’t speak Spanish himself — the way that Telemundo announcers start talking faster as the action on the pitch intensifies is its own kind of language. Even if he steps away from the TV for a moment, he can rest assured that he won’t miss anything important (something he made light of in a recent Instagram reel).
“Sometimes I just doze off if it’s in English,” he adds.
For many Latin American fans in the US, watching the World Cup in Spanish is a given. But for the 2026 tournament, even some people who don’t have Latin American roots or who don’t speak Spanish are opting for Telemundo over Fox. Meghan Dyer Pavs, a former elementary school teacher outside of Worcester, Massachusetts, calls Telemundo broadcasts “the best thing in American culture right now.” Having already convinced her kids and husband of her position, she recently converted her college roommate, too. Comedian Trevor Noah is also a fan, declaring Telemundo “the best coverage in town.”
