Spanish-language media giant TelevisaUnivision reported a 29 percent U.S. advertising revenue drop and an 11 percent total U.S. revenue decline to $722 million in the second quarter when NBCUniversal’s Telemundo, its rival, featured the Spanish-language rights to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The U.S. ad results reflected “cyclical softness in our business from competitive sports programming,” the company said. “In Mexico, advertising revenue increased 23 percent to $353 million, driven by the FIFA World Cup.”
Total company revenue in the second quarter grew 10 percent to $1.3 billion, “driven by 53 percent growth in Mexico following a record-breaking FIFA World Cup performance that reached 675 million total viewers across linear and [streamer] ViX,” said TelevisaUnivision. But its operating Income dropped to $224 million from $241 million, while adjusted OIBDA of $388 million was down from $398 million in the year-ago period.
Total quarterly subscription and licensing revenue jumped 40 percent to $621 million, “driven by approximately $90 million in revenue attributable to sublicensing the FIFA World Cup rights in other Spanish-speaking Latin American countries, the expansion of ViX’s premium tier and higher linear distribution revenue,” the company said. “In the U.S., it grew 8 percent to $377 million, driven by growth in ViX’s premium tiers, the company’s partnership with Hulu Live TV and higher average rates. In Mexico, it grew 157 percent to $245 million, driven by strong content licensing revenue and growth in ViX’s premium tier.”
Operating expenses increased 16 percent, or 11 percent when excluding foreign exchange impacts, “mainly driven by sports costs associated with the FIFA World Cup,” the firm said. The higher expenses hit the bottom line.
“TelevisaUnivision delivered solid second-quarter financial results, driven by the record-breaking success of our FIFA World Cup coverage,” said Daniel Alegre, CEO of TelevisaUnivision. “The tournament reinforced why soccer is a cornerstone of our strategy and why we are the ‘home of soccer’ for Hispanics. Sports, together with our continued investments in live events and premium entertainment, ensure that we remain the destination for culturally relevant moments that matter.”
Concluded the CEO: “Combined with our unique connection to our audience and the importance of our platforms heading into the U.S. election cycle, this momentum positions us well to drive sustained profitability while creating even greater value for our audiences, advertisers, and partners.”
